Rokushiki no Naruto
by Lord of the weed
Summary: It might have been fate, a chance meeting or his unbelievable luck. Regardless of what it was, Naruto came into possession of a scroll, containing one of the best kept secrets from another world, Rokushiki. The most feared and dangerous martial arts style in the world of One Piece. Will this change in the course of destiny make Naruto's journey easier or harder? No Yaoi/Yuri/Harem
1. Beginning of a Legend

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the World Government and be under Whitebeard's protection.

**AN:** This is my first story and english is my second language, so please don't be too harsh and give me constructive criticism. As long as a review doesn't get personal and is voiced in a civilized manner I'm not offended by negative feedback, thus speak your mind and tell me what you think I'm doing wrong, because that's the only way an author can improve his skill. Feel free to praise me too of course and I'm open to suggestions as well.

**Warnings:** Like the title suggests Naruto will focus mostly on his taijutsu. Selected Movie/Filler characters are going to appear. As the story progresses expect a semi-godlike Naruto capable of using Haki with an enormous sense of pride, who follows the philosophy of Rikudō Sennin's elder son that force and strength are the key to peace, not love. This story will be updated slowly, once or twice a month, due to my lack of free time. No Kage Bunshin for Naruto. Confirmed pairings are **NarutoxShizuka**(Shippuuden filler episode 235) and **SasukexHinata**. Relatively strong and more serious Sakura. You have been warned.

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts'

"Human speech"

_**Jutsu**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

_Rokushiki (Six Powers)_

_1. Shigan (Finger Pistol): "A bullet isn't needed to pierce the human body.", Kaku_  
_2. Geppō (Moonwalk): "One can also kick the air to float...", Blueno_  
_3. Rankyaku (Storm Leg): "It is possible to be fast enough to cause slicing winds...", Kalifa_  
_4. Kami-e (Paper Art): "But there's no art to being hit...", Blueno_  
_5. Soru (Shave): "With leg strength explosive enough to seemingly cause one's body to "disappear"...", Blueno_  
_6. Tekkai (Iron Mass): "We've trained our bodies such that we can turn them into "Iron Carapaces" if we so choose...", Blueno_  
_7. Rokuōgan (Six King Pistol): "Let me show you... the most powerful attack available to those with full mastery of Rokushiki.", Lucci_

**Chapter 1 - Beginning of a Legend**

_Ring Ring Ring Ring Ring Ring..._

Blue eyes opened, but quickly narrowed in annoyance. The previously sleeping boy released a moan of discomfort and shifted a couple of times in his bed until he couldn't take it anymore. With the aid of his sensitive ears and still blurry vision he spotted the source of the annoying sound and smashed his palm in one swift movement onto a button on top of his alarm clock, successfully silencing the device that spoiled his wonderful dream about swimming in a giant bowl of delicious ramen. Pulling himself slowly up into a sitting position he yawned loudly, stretched his body and kicked off his blanket before he took off his nightcap and jumped out his bed.

The boy wore a pyjama, was comparably short for his age, had bright spiky blond hair, tan skin, magnificent cerulean blue eyes and three whisker like marks on each cheek, that gave him a feline like appearance. His name was Naruto Uzumaki, self-proclaimed future Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato.

He moved sleepily across the room towards a calendar hanging on the wall. A look at it revealed to him that today was a special day in Konoha, october tenth. Exactly ten years ago his greatest hero, the Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze aka _Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō (Konoha's Yellow Flash)_, a shinobi whose mere presence on a battlefield could send entire armies of even the bravest ninja fleeing, fought and killed the mighty _Kyūbi no Yōko (Nine-Tailed Demon Fox)_, sacrificing his own life to save others, a truly honorable death.

This demon fox was by far the strongest of the nine _Bijū (Tailed beasts)_, an ancient creature possessing such tremendous power that it was regarded as a force of nature itself, feared all over the continent. According to the stories of the lucky ones who encountered this behemoth and survived it could easily crush a mountain and cause a tsunami with just one swing from one of its nine tails.

On that fateful night, the Kyūbi appeared out of nowhere right in the middle of the village and began to destroy everything in its sight, killing many citizens, ninja and civilians alike, leaving a large part of the village in ruins. The shinobi of Konoha, of course, put up fierce resistance to protect their home and loved ones, however, despite being respected for their prowess and teamwork throughout the elemental nations, they were nothing but a raft caught in a hurricane against the sheer might of the Kyūbi and in spite of all their heroic efforts they couldn't even lay a scratch on it. Even the Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi himself, a man who had earned himself the title _Shinobi no Kami (G__od of Shinobi)_, only managed to chase it out of the village. It was the Yondaime Hokage who ultimately put an end to the carnage.

Today the citizens of Konoha will mourn for the dead and their fallen hero as well as celebrate their continuing existence with a festival, but october tenth was also Naruto's tenth birthday. Remembering that caused a beaming smile to appear on the boy's face. Though that look lasted only a brief moment until it was quickly replaced by one of sadness.

Except for three people everyone in Konoha is going to treat him with much more hostility than usual. Normally, the villagers glare at him with hatred and disgust visible in their cold and uncaring eyes, call him names like demon spawn and throw him out of stores, even if he had enough money to pay for the items or simply ignore him.

However, as soon as the festival starts everyone who spots him would glance at him with outright murderous intent and either spit or throw food at him. In very rare cases some went so far as to attack him, an innocent helpless child. Though, those foolish or drunk enough to strike him were quickly overwhelmed and arrested by the ANBU, the Hokage's masked elite ninja force and dragged unceremoniously to the _T&I department_ where they vanished in its depths, never seen or heard of again. Such unpleasant experiences led him to stay away from the crowd during that time of the year.

In his early years the boy toyed with the idea of running away from Konoha, to escape this cruel treatment and travel around the world, going on a huge adventure. Naruto was definitely not the sharpest kunai in the pouch, but even he knew that leaving is impossible. The blonde can't climb the giant and intimidating wall surrounding the village or simply march through one of the gates leading outside, no matter how good he was at moving unnoticed and he hasn't discovered any other paths leading in and out of the village yet. Furthermore, he was sure that the ANBU would find him and drag him forcefully back to Konoha pretty quickly should he successfully manage to miraculously get outside.

Apart from the impossible odds Naruto had two more reasons to stay. Firstly, he was not someone who ran away from problems like a coward. He vowed to himself that one day the villagers would recognize him and what better way was there to achieve this goal than becoming Hokage. When he walked next to the old man through the always busy streets of Konoha he noticed that no one would dare to look at him with bad intentions or whisper behind his back, at least until they were out of their view or just ignore him. Having observed that the old man's presence alone caused such a drastic change in the villager's behaviour he concluded the people would surely acknowledge him if he himself became Hokage. It was settled, Naruto Uzumaki would one day take the old man's hat!

Thinking about the kind Hokage, his grandfather figure, brought a small smile back on his face. Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Ichiraku family, consisting of Teuchi and his daughter Ayame, his sister figure, who helped her father running his ramen stand, were the second reason why he didn't attempt to leave or in the most desperate moment of his short life didn't try to end it. His very first memories were of Hiruzen smiling at him when no other did, playing with him and teaching him how to read and write at the orphanage, or how he used to call this place, hell hole.

Early in his life he noticed his rapid healing abilities. Deep cuts and bruises would heal in a couple of minutes up to an hour or two, whereas other children needed a day or more for such wounds to heal completely. To his misfortune his _caretakers_ noticed this as well. Needless to say seeing Naruto's wounds heal unnaturally quick only enforced their believe that the boy was a demon in human disguise and every now and then _accidents_ occurred. They would often violently grab him by his arms with enough force to almost crack his bones, if he violated a rule, stick their legs out so he would stumble, shove him against a wall when passing by or spill hot tea over him, everything happened accidentally of course. But the devious smirks on their faces and empty or sarcastic apologies told him otherwise.

Furthermore, they told all the other children to stay away from him and would punish all severely who associated with him, making him an outcast. Lastly, they even forbade him to take and read books from the small library the place had, thus, despite all of Hiruzen's efforts, his progress in reading and writing was fairly slow.

In this place he also learned a valuable lesson. That crying won't solve your problems. The treatment hurt him not just physically, but mentally as well, yet he refused to show them his grief openly by crying after he had wailed himself to sleep countless of times, realizing it didn't change anything.

Naruto could have told the Hokage what happened to him during one of his visits but he had no proof, because his body showed no signs of his abuse. Besides, he didn't want to bother the old man with his problems, instead he wanted to enjoy the rare times they spent together and told him that he had been taken good care of.

Apparently, fed up with their unsuccessful attempts of breaking him to such an extend that it would drive him to commit suicide, the orphanage employee's kicked him out in hope that the blonde would starve to death while the Hokage was on a diplomatic mission to Sunagakure, knowing no one would be willing to sell the loathed demon food. How long can a six-year old survive on his own anyway? A foolproof plan, ruined by two factors.

First was Naruto's survival instinct. To quench his thirst he initially drank water from the rivers, however, when he felt sick after doing that several times the boy instead drank rainwater and the morning dew. Only later on Naruto learned that he had to first filter the unclean water and boil it afterwards to safely consume it. Also, to satisfy his hunger, Naruto was able to catch the local wildlife with very simple but well thought out traps, find wild growing fruits and steal enough food to barely survive on his own for quite some time. Hunting to survive honed his skill in constructing traps along with his stealth to levels only surpassed by experienced jōnin.

Second was the Ichiraku family. Seeing him in his pitiful state they offered him free bowls of ramen out of kindness. At first he thought it was some sort of trick and that the food had to be poisoned since Naruto made bad experiences in trusting adults, but his hunger was too grand and those suspicions luckily turned out to be false. On the contrary, he found people who actually cared for him and introduced him to the wonderful world of ramen. His bond with them was cemented after they stood up for him and continued to serve him free ramen although other customers threatened to never visit their stand again as long as he ate there. At this moment he cried his first tears of joy, while being comforted by Ayame. Both would always occupy a special place in his heart.

Eventually, the Hokage returned from his mission and stumbled upon Naruto outside of the orphanage and noticed the state his clothes were in and how dirty he was. Suspicious, he brought him into his office and demanded an explanation to which Naruto complied and told him what happened. Needless to say Hiruzen Sarutobi was at a loss for words. Assuring Naruto that he would take care of everything now, he sent him to the waiting room within the Hokage tower and ordered two ANBU to guard him.

Once Naruto left the room he couldn't contain his killing intent anymore, which he had supressed in front of the innocent boy. It forced his four hidden ANBU bodyguards to their knees, proving that he indeed earned the titles _Kage_ and _Shinobi no Kami_. After calming down he called Ibiki, notorious head of _Konohagakure Jōhōbu (Konoha's Intelligence Division)_, and ordered him to arrest the orphanage employee's, question them and if found guilty of child abuse to _dispose_ of them. Afterwards, he began to take measures for Naruto's future and safety.

From now on till the blonde graduated at least three handpicked ANBU would secretly follow Naruto and protect him from harm. Moreover, he would check on him with the help of the _**Tōmegane no Jutsu**** (Crystal Ball Jutsu)**_ on a regular basis, a technique which enables the user to observe people through a special manufactured crystal ball. The range of this jutsu is only limited by the chakra supplied and chakra sensitive people would feel that they are being watched, making it not usable to spy on trained ninja.

In addition, Hiruzen offered the Ichiraku family financial support to compensate for their loss of customers as a sign of his gratitude and organized an apartment for Naruto to live in. The blonde would receive enough money every month to cover his living expenses and still be able save some.

In said apartment, Naruto noticed that he lost himself in his thoughts and therefore lost the track of time, so he took a look at his alarm clock.

'Jiji will arrive in two and a half hours and take me to Ichiraku's. Maybe he will bring me a present too. That would be great!', he thought in excitement at the prospect of possibly receiving a present and spending time with his precious people. Naruto's beaming smile returned fully and he began his morning routine with renewed enthusiasm.

He took an ice-cold shower, a circumstance that didn't bother him much for he has long since grown accustomed to it because the hot water supply always _malfunctioned_, did some morning exercises, ate only a small cup of instant ramen and merely a single slice of toast for breakfast to save his appetite, took care of his plants, which helped him to calm his hyperactive nature a bit, and finally changed into his usual outfit.

It consisted of a blue, white but mostly bright orange jumpsuit worn over a black shirt, a white swirl on its upper-left sleeve and a red one on the back, orange pants, blue sandals and green goggles, that would occupy his forehead until he receives a Konoha headband.

'The academy.' he pondered bitterly and shook his head. That place was definitely not as he expected it to be. Jiji told him three years ago, before his first day as an official academy student began, that he would learn everything necessary to become a splendid ninja and could spend time with children his own age without their parents dragging them away from him.

Instead of learning cool and devastating ninjutsu or how to rescue a princess, he had to listen to monotonous spoken and boring lessons about history, math, cryptology, tactics, geography, the basics of human anatomy, chakra and genjutsu theory as well as memorize countless of shinobi rules and the twelve hand seals.

Most of these lessons he either slept through, was daydreaming about his future heroic adventures or simply skipped them entirely. It wasn't his fault that the teachers always used long and complex words he didn't understand to explain everything. Naruto wasn't an idiot as everyone for some reason seemed to believe, far from it. He just needed simplified explanations. The first months he actually tried to ask questions, but was mostly either ignored or laughed at. Iruka Umino, the only teacher who didn't let his feelings interfere with his job, answered his questions, still no matter how hard he tried to understand the man it was like he spoke a different language while teaching.

Additionally there was also the completely useless _**Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Jutsu)**_, that for some reason seemed impossible for him to perform, no matter how hard he tried, and he always put everything he could muster into that jutsu. All his efforts always resulted in clones that looked like they are dying from a deadly and extremely painful disease.

The only jutsu he truly exceeded in, out of the three they were being taught, was the _**Henge **__**no Jutsu**_ (Transformation Jutsu). Suddenly he smirked slyly, his eyes gaining a mischievous glint and he chuckled inwardly 'Hehe I have almost completed my greatest jutsu. I still need to research some certain anatomic aspects, but as soon as I have finished that I will beat the old man with it and take his hat, then everyone will bow before my greatness, dattebayo.'

Since Naruto started the academy he began to use his exceptional talent for stealth and trap construction to play pranks on his teachers to get attention. Seeing it work at the academy, he unleashed a series of pranks upon the rest of village, resulting in his reputation as a troublemaker.

Moreover, there was nothing they could teach him about survival in the wilderness anymore since he experienced it first hand and the taijutsu lessons were frustrating. The exercises to increase his stamina, speed and strength didn't even make him break a sweat and the katas, which his teacher Mizuki showed him, felt very uncomfortable, sometimes the stances even hurt and the blunt shuriken and kunai he received for training and target practice felt unnaturally heavy.

'The worst of all is that in almost every spar I'm paired against Sasuke-teme.' he thought with his hands forming into fists, his teeth clenching and an angry look in his eyes.

If there was one person in the world Naruto utterly despised, it was Sasuke Uchiha or teme for short. Only thinking about him made his blood boil. That bastard gets everything Naruto ever carved for served on a silver platter because of his name alone and doesn't seem to even want it! Respect, attention and even the affection of _his _Sakura-chan, his crush, his green-eyed and pink haired angel. On top of that Sasuke doesn't acknowledge him, calls him dope or nuisance and would humiliate him in front of the entire class by defeating him in a few seconds.

'Just because his last name is _Uchiha_ doesn't mean he can walk around as if he owns the damn place! To think that after finding out about what happened to his family I considered to befriend him. That arrogant bastard and his stuck up attitude make me want to punch him into the ground.', he thought furiously, but as much as he wished to do that and make Sasuke acknowledge him as his equal, he couldn't.

It was hard to admit, but Naruto couldn't deny it. Sasuke was far more skilled than him. A prodigy, he heard the villagers call Sasuke and this Nenji (misspelling of his name is intentional) or something guy he caught only a glimpse once at the schoolyard, who has these strange and creepy white eyes like that weird stuttering Hinata girl in his class.

Both seem to be the only topic of all the conversations the girls at the academy are talking about, aside from hair care and diet. The only exception was that Hinata girl. She never or rarely spoke with the other girls, or anyone at all. He saved her once from getting beaten up by bullies, before a man with the same eyes as her dragged her away from him. Also, for some strange reason this girl seemed to suffer from constant fever when he was around her and was following him home sometimes, poorly masking her presence.

Apart from his rapid healing ability he also discovered that he had better senses than the majority of his age group. Naruto caught her scent, heard her footsteps or caught a glimpse of her sloppy and nervous movements in the corner of his eyes when she moved around in the bushes or tried to hide behind a tree. Every time he tried to face Hinata about that she would pass out after he merely spoke three words, a very strange girl in his opinion, yet he would like to befriend her, because she appeared nice and kind, but it appears as if she doesn't like talking to him or talking in general.

Moreover, he couldn't shake off this feeling that someone else was following him too. 'Hmmm... Whoever it is. The person is certainly doing a better job than Hinata. I just hope it's not one of those _fanboys_ I heard about', he thought and shuddered, he doesn't swing that way.

The only students he hung around with frequently were Kiba Inuzuka and his dog Akamaru, an inseparable duo, Shikamaru Nara and Chōji Akimichi. He wouldn't go as far as to call them his friends though. They are more like companions to him, who hang around with him while skipping the lessons as he did out of boredom, trying to kill time and Kiba occasionally helped him out with a prank. That was the extend of the bond he shared with them.

Taking a look around he thought 'This place is surely mess. I still have 30 minutes and should use the time to clean up.' Now normally he wouldn't bother to clean his apartment but his Jiji's visit was an exception. Completing the task he waited patiently and was rewarded by a knock on his door. Opening it he saw the old man and quickly tackled him in a bone crushing hug.

"Jiji, you are finally here. I'm so happy to see you."

"Happy birthday Naruto. I'm happy to see you too.", Hiruzen said while smiling and returning the hug.

The old man genuinely cared for him and he could talk to him about literally everything, except for one topic that the Kage always seemed to avoid at all cost, namely his parents. After witnessing other children interact with their parents he wanted to know about them. The only fact Jiji revealed to him was that this Kyūbi monster killed them, looking visibly older when he answered. Nothing else, no names, relatives, pictures, nothing.

About half a minute passed and both ended the hug. "Have you brought me a present?", Naruto asked, bouncing up and down in excitement, looking up at the Hokage with large and hopeful blue eyes. Nodding and smiling he reached into his robes and pulled out a box. Not even a second in his hand, faster than the Kage could blink, his hand was already empty and Naruto already sat in the middle of the room, tearing apart the wrapping paper and throwing the pieces like confetti in the air.

'That boy. He might have inherited your looks Minato, but his personality without a doubt comes from Kushina.', the Kage mused nostalgically. Finished, Naruto opened the box and was wide-eyed. A set of actually sharp kunai and shuriken! Taking some of the items in his hands, he immediately noticed they felt much lighter than the blunt ones he got from the academy. They would start training with sharp projectiles in the coming semester. Only ninja could buy real equipment, hence all the clan heirs in his class and students with a ninja in the family have already practiced with sharp ones for years, something he thought was very unfair.

"Thank you so much Jiji. I won't disappoint you. I will train hard with those and show them all what an awesome shinobi I am, dattebayo", he announced with a wide smile, which Hiruzen returned.

"I'm glad you like my present Naruto. Are you ready to go so we can celebrate your birthday?"

Putting the items back in the box, he stood up and replied, "You bet I am."

With that being said Naruto took his beloved toad shaped wallet, the first present he ever received, slid it in one of his pockets and marched out with Hiruzen at his side, heading for Ichiraku's Ramen Bar.

Once they reached their destination both were greeted by the heavenly scent of ramen and the kind owners, who congratulated the boy. They talked for hours and Naruto ate as much as his little stomach could fit.

"Ugh. I'm stuffed. Your ramen is the best old man.", the blonde declared while holding his bulged stomach with his hands.

"Hey! I'm not old... but tank you Naruto. It's always a pleasure to hear such a compliment from our favourite customer." Teuchi replied, smiling with his arms folded before his chest.

"Sigh. Naruto. It's getting late and I really have to go now and prepare for the... festival", The Hokage had to be present at such an event. Hiruzen truly hated the ignorance of the villagers. Naruto should be the centre of the festival and seen as the hero he is, the crowd praising his name for holding that beast at bay like his father wanted, but instead he would be spit at for even be near it. Naruto looked down from his stool, his bangs shadowed his eyes and a long silence followed.

"I understand Jiji. Thanks for the present again and for the meal. Bye Teuchi, Ayame-neechan, Jiji. See you all later." He spoke in a sad tone, stood up and left the stand to go home with his hands shoved in his pockets and a downcast look.

"Bye Naruto.", they said collectively. The three wanted to add _'and have a nice day'_ but that would have only poured oil into the fire.

"Poor boy. Why can't they see the kind, sweet and innocent boy he is and not the monster trapped within him.", Ayame remarked angrily at her little adopted brother's sadness.

"One day they will, I'm sure of it.", Hiruzen assured, paid for the meal he and Naruto had and stood up to go.

"I hope so.", responded Teuchi with a sigh. Once Hiruzen was out of sight he leaned closer to his daughter and whispered "By the way, I don't look that old, now do I?" He received a giggle and the comment "Well, certainly the flames of youth burn brightly within you."... That was not the answer he hoped for.

* * *

Naruto groaned "Urgh. Sooooooo boring." Two hours passed after he arrived back at his apartment and the festival has already started. The boy had nothing to do and couldn't practice with his new set of kunai and shuriken inside.

'Hmm Maybe I should wander around a bit. That way I get at least some fresh air but where should I go?', Naruto pondered and an idea came to his mind. Snapping his fingers he muttered "...That's it. If they won't let me participate I will go to the Hokage Monument and show the Yondaime my respect that way."

And so he left his apartment for his favourite spot in the village, the top of the Yondaime Hokage's head. Little did he knew that his spot was already occupied.

* * *

Looking down from the Hokage Monument upon the village of Konoha was no other than Bartholomew Kuma. A true giant of a man, standing nearly 7 meters tall (22'6"/6,89m). No human in _this_ world came even close to his intimidating size.

He was dressed in a black jacket with a white target cross at the front and several paw prints at the bottom of it, grey pants adorned with brown circles, brown boots, black gloves and a grey hat, decorated with two bear like ears. Furthermore, he carried a bible in his left hand.

What allowed him to him to stand there in the first place was the special power of the _Nikyu Nikyu no Mi (Paw-Paw Fruit)_, a devil fruit that once consumed grants the user paw pads, which make someone capable of pushing _anything_, making him capable of pushing the dimensional barriers apart, an extremely difficult task, that required all of his concentration and pushed the power of his devil fruit to its absolute limits.

The giant had already seen every notable place in his world and wanted to spend some time at a place where nobody would recognize him. He found himself in a large forest outside the village where a dozen foolish bandits ambushed him. They were hesitant at first, probably intimidated by his size, but after one of them shouted _just a cheap genjutsu trick_ they charged him head on. Kuma, having never traveled beyond the borders of his world before, was genuinely surprised to actually encounter humans, but more so by the fact that they spoke his language. Dealing with them in less than three seconds he left one barely alive and _pushed_ the mans knowledge out of him, making him sort of brain-dead and transferred it into himself, thus he learned how this world worked.

It's ruled by shinobi or sometimes also referred to as ninja, assassins for hire. The ninja world views the ideal shinobi as an emotionless tool, something he himself was in the process of becoming. He was turned into a cyborg by the most brilliant scientist of his world, Dr. Vegapunk, whose scientific knowledge was at least 500 years ahead of his world's current level of technology, and there was not much of his original body left. In a few weeks his transformation would be complete and he would die, becoming nothing more than a machine waiting to execute its next order.

Learning about Konoha he sneaked into the village to take a look at it. He wasn't worried for his safety in the least. He's a _Shichibukai,_ one of the _Seven Warlords of the Sea_ and quite capable of defending himself, even in unknown lands. If he really wanted to he could flatten this entire village with a single attack.

Thanks to the data his sensors provided Kuma noticed a boy approaching his location with three pursuers not far behind him. They were fairly well hidden he had to admit. 'Probably bodyguards', he concluded.

As Naruto came near the Yondaime's head he stopped and was wide-eyed at the sight before him. 'Who... is... that? He's so... HUGE.' Childish curiosity getting the better of him he approached the man fast before the ANBU had any chance to intercept him. They had never before seen or heard of such a humongous man.

"Stay calm! This stranger may take Naruto as hostage if we reveal ourselves now. Protect Naruto at all cost and don't underestimate the foreigner.", the purple haired female ANBU member, her mask that of a cat with three red stripes, Yūgao Uzuki, instructed her two subordinates through the radio and gripped the handle of her tantō tightly, ready to jump in as soon as the stranger would do any hostile movements towards Naruto. "If he could sneak in with the tight security measures during the festival, despite his size, he could be S-rank level, so be careful and don't provoke him.", she added.

"Oi! Oi! Hello! My name is Naruto Uzumaki, future Hokage of Konoha, nice to meet ya.", the energetic blond boy introduced himself proudly and a short moment in silence followed before the giant replied. "Kuma, my name is Bartholomew Kuma. What is a little boy like you doing up here all _alone_?" he responded, choosing not to expose the boy's hidden pursuers without taking his gaze from the village to look down at him.

Now if there was an easy way to provoke Naruto, it was to call him little. His left eyebrow began to twitch and he shouted "I'm NOT little!" while swinging his arms wildly. Ignoring his little outburst Kuma continued "Shouldn't you be down there with the others celebrate as well?". Now Naruto's fury was replaced by sadness. He could hear the people celebrating from afar. Looking down he responded "I'm not welcome there. If I go near the festival the villagers would throw things at me, spit at me or sometimes even attack me. In their eyes I'm some sort of demon." His eyes teared up and a lone tear escaped each eye, which he quickly wiped away with his sleeve, ashamed that he had lost himself for a short moment.

Kuma turned to face Naruto, his footsteps echoed through the air. "If you were to go on a trip... where would you like to go?", Kuma questioned while slowly taking off his gloves, putting the ANBU on edge.

Dismissing the man's odd gesture Naruto answered "I don't wish to be anywhere else.", much to Kuma's surprise, whose eyes widened slightly. Being confused he asked incredulously "Don't you wish to leave this place that treats you so poorly? I can give you the opportunity to go wherever you wish." Without hesitating a second Naruto replied "I won't leave my precious people behind. My dream is to become Hokage and then everybody is going to respect me, dattebayo.", he said with determination burning in his eyes. After that statement Kuma put his gloves back in place.

"Respect cannot be given, you must earn it." Naruto's eyes widened at that, he never saw it from this point of view. "Besides, a leader must be willing to do _anything_ to protect those under his care. Could you sacrifice yourself for those who mistreated you,... who you hate."

"I d-don't ha...", Naruto began, trying to deny the truth.

"You can lie to me but not to yourself. You secretly hate them in a corner of your heart, don't you?", Kuma quickly interrupted him, silencing the boy, who just looked downwards in response.

"But that doesn't matter.", he heard Kuma say and his head snapped upwards. He gave the giant a confused look, not understanding what exactly he meant. "Huh?"

"What really matters is, can you grow past that hatred? Show them that they are wrong about you. Could you sacrifice yourself for those who caused you such misery?", Kuma inquired, not expecting an immediate reply from the blonde, who fixed the ground again. However, this time his bangs shadowed his eyes.

A deafeningly silence followed during which the most painful memories of his short life flooded the boy's mind, causing his eyes to tear up again and occasionally flicker between blue and red, the abuse, the name calling, the hate-filled glares, the tears he shed from loneliness, cold and hunger and finally the one moment he shakily held a sharp splinter of glass against his throat while searching desperately for a reason to live, which he found to be his precious people Hiruzen, Teuchi and Ayame.

He gritted his teeth in anger and balled his hands into fists. 'I hate them so much!' Can he really let it all go, just like that? Can he forgive them for the sake of his dream?

'If respect has to be earned... then even if I had lived a different life... I still would have to earn respect. Just like crying won't change anything, so won't holding onto my hate... Alright, I will let it go of it this once. One day, instead of demon they are going to call me hero!'

After what felt like an eternity Naruto looked up directly into Kuma's eyes, noting they resemble Hinata's in a way and replied with even more fire in his eyes than before.

"From now on my new dream is to _earn_ their respect so they are going to _make_ me the Hokage. Everyone who put me down will realize that he was wrong about me. I'm not a loser, I'm _Naruto __Uzumaki_, a man who will shake this world, remember that name, dattebayo!"

Kuma studied the boy's expression 'That look in his eyes... such strong ambition.' and came to a decision. He moved his large hand into his jacket. The ANBU almost jumped in, but stopped once they saw he just pulled out a scroll and handed it to Naruto. "With the help of this scroll you can fulfill this dream."

Naruto looked at the scroll, which was actually bigger than himself by a few inches. "But... But I don't want to use a shortcut on the road to fulfill my dream."

"That scroll will only guide you to the right path. The path itself you must walk on your own."

Naruto admired the scroll he held in his arms.

"My journey ends soon, but yours is about to start. We will not be seeing one another again... farewell."

"What do you... mean?"

He could only blink. Where Kuma once stood was now nothing but air.

"What happened?! Where did he go?!" the three ANBU exclaimed in utter shock at the same time.

'I neither felt him building up any chakra nor seen him use hand signs or move at all! Was that some type of kekkei genkai? Maybe **_Jinton (Quick Style)_**? Regardless, I must inform Hokage-sama immediately.'

"You two, continue to watch over him. I'm going to report this event to Hokage-sama. He will know what to do.", Yūgao ordered through her radio, formed a ram seal and used Konoha's version of the **_S_****_hunshin no Jutsu (Teleportation Jutsu)_** to seemingly vanish in a swirl of leaves.

After composing himself Naruto walked back home, holding the scroll tightly. 'Wherever you came from, thank you for opening my eyes.' And so began the legend of a true warrior, who will become known throughout the entire world as _Rokushiki no Naruto _along with many other titles he will earn on his journey.


	2. Aftermath

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the World Government and be under Whitebeard's protection. The training methods in this chapter are inspired by Dragonball, which belongs to Akira Toriyama.

**AN:** Thanks to all who took their time to review my story and those who added it to their favourites.

To answer a question I received: He will learn the Rasengan, even modify it, to counter attacks like Chidori for instance. Also, the One Piece and Naruto world share the same language _and_ writing.

**Published:** 01.24.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts' ; **'Bijū thoughts'**

"Human speech" ; **"****Bijū** speech/Shouting"

_**Jutsu/Rokushiki technique**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 2 - Aftermath**

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched his village celebrate the Yondaime Hokage's victory and sacrifice through one of the windows in his office. He was smoking his pipe with a pleased expression on his face, because he finally defeated todays stack of paper on his desk. 'Hehe Another victory for the _Shinobi no Kami_.', he cheered in his mind. However, his joyful expression didn't remain for long.

It would have been a perfect day if only Naruto's sadness wouldn't have left this bitter taste in his mouth. The boy would have loved to spend his birthday together with him at the festival, where young and old alike, dressed in colorful kimonos, laughed and enjoyed themselves, ate sweet delicacies, listened to musicians and the children would play games at the various stands like for instance Kingyo-sukui (Goldfish scooping). After he left Naruto to his own devices he made a public appearance, held a speech about the Hi no Ishi (Will of Fire) and shook the hands of several merchants, nobles and clan heads, before he retreated back to his office, where he had to catch up with the work he left behind to spend time with Naruto.

The old Kage turned his gaze onto Minato's picture on the wall right next to his own. 'Oh Minato. If you were here and could see how the people of the village, that you loved with all your heart, spit on your last words and dare to celebrate you at the same time. What would you say?'

Prejudice against jinchūriki was not a new phenomenon or restricted to a certain area of the world. He cursed the fool who spread the rumor that they are manifestations of the beasts trapped within them ages ago and the gullibility of the masses. To all who have decent knowledge about fūinjutsu this statement is outright ridiculous. Granted, a damaged or an amateurish created seal could let a Bijū influence the host's mind, but a skilled sealmaster could fix that easily. A shame that since the Uzumaki clans demise the number of skilled sealmasters dwindled to a handful.

Maybe the tyrannical reign of Yagura, Yondaime Mizukage and _Jinchūriki of the Sanbi_, also helped to enforce such beliefs. That man appears to have gone insane and news about gruesome massacres of people possessing a kekkei genkai ordered by him, which the common people recently named _The Bloodline Purge_, reach Konoha weekly. Or it simply seems to be the nature of man to fear what you don't understand.

The fact that Naruto doesn't even know why he's treated with such hostility must probably be the worst for the boy. At least, as far as he knew, the other jinchūriki are aware of their status, whereas Naruto, Naruto's generation and the rest of the world are left in the dark about it, but for good reasons.

He decreed a law to never mention Naruto's status to the boy himself or the younger generation in order to let the blonde experience a normal childhood, yet the older generation found ways around his law and managed to pass their grudge, albeit to a much weaker extend, down to the next generation, telling them he's a monster that doesn't deserve to live and that they must avoid him or else he would _corrupt_ them and other nonsense.

If it would be revealed to the world that Naruto is the _Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi no Yōko_ the balance of power between the five great ninja villages, that maintains the current period of peace this generation is blessed with, would be threatened. Konoha is already regarded as the strongest village, even without an official jinchūriki. Jiraiya and his spy network are doing all they can to prevent this information from leaving Konoha, which inside its own walls isn't the best kept secret and any decent spy could put two and two together.

In addition, the revelation of his heritage might be even more disastrous. Iwa feared Minato as much as a Bijū for crippling their once mighty forces and would be calling for Naruto's blood. Also, the Yondaime Raikage A respected Minato for his skill and speed. He longs for power, believing that respect and strength mean everything in the ninja world, hence he would go to great lengths in order to obtain it, as he has shown when he ordered to kidnap the Hyūga heiress, Hinata, during the signing of a _peace treaty_.

Back then Iwa, Kumo and Kiri feared the rise of Uzushiogakure into a sixth great ninja village, joined forces and started a preventive war against it to exterminate the Uzumaki blood from the face of the earth. They all might fear a rebirth of this once powerful clan, renown for their incredible longevity and life force, due to their distant relation to the Senju, as well as their unrivaled skill in the art of fūinjutsu, here in Konoha and could join forces again. He was glad that Naruto didn't share the trademark red hair of the Uzumaki, so they wouldn't connect his last name to the actual Uzumaki clan that easily. In conclusion, if all this information would be revealed war would be inevitable and Naruto would become the price.

The chances of Konoha to win a war against those three with Suna as their ally are slim. He isn't getting younger and only a shadow of the man he once was. A Kage dying during a war is disastrous. On top of that Suna hasn't produced any _notable_ shinobi in the years that followed Pakura's demise and currently suffers from an economic crisis due to the Wind Daimyō outsourcing missions to Konoha, thus making the village unable to finance a prolonged war or a campaign into enemy territory. The minor villages like Amegakure or Kusagakure are an unknown variable, but if they sided with the enemy Konoha would lose for sure.

Hiruzen was brought out of his dark thoughts by three knocks on his door. He sat down on his seat and put his pipe aside.

"Come in", he ordered while resting his elbows on the desk and folding his hands in front of his chin. The four hidden ANBU bodyguards tensed. Entering and moving into the middle of the room was one of their fellow ANBU.

"I didn't expect you to return so early _Tenzō_. What have you found?"

Tenzō was a codename the nameless ANBU prefered. He was the only one of six kidnapped infants who survived Orochimaru's injections with Hashirama Senju's DNA, making him able to use the famous **_Mokuton no Jutsu (Wood Style Techniques)_**. However, despite being a highly capable ninja, Tenzō's skill in Mokuton was nowhere near Hashirama's level, who at one point in time was able to subdue _all_ nine Bijū using it and distributed them to the other villages, that formed shortly after the foundation of Konoha, to balance the power between them, thus maintaining peace... but it didn't work out as he had anticipated.

Luckily, Tenzō's survival was unknown to the traitorous snake, whom Hiruzen once saw as a son, just like Naruto, and was unable to kill him while he had the chance, being indirectly responsible for the deaths of only Kami-sama knows how many people, due to Orochimaru's quest for immortality. A mistake he indents to correct if given another opportunity.

"Hokage-sama, during our patrol me and my squad stumbled upon one unconscious and eleven dead bandits, who seemed to have been killed in a... very unusual way." Tenzō stated in a calm voice.

"Leave us alone." Hiruzen ordered his bodyguards, who left the room discretely but stayed in the vicinity. He adopted a serious look and activated a privacy seal, created by Mito Uzumaki and later upgraded by Minato and Kushina. You never knew who could eavesdrop.

"Proceed."

"All except one have head-sized holes in their torsos with four smaller ones above it. It looks like something pierced right through them like a knife through butter, but the most worrying thing is that even the trees 200 meters behind them have been pierced too."

To pierce trees Hashirama created requires very powerful jutsu. Hiruzen also held the title of _Purofessā (__The Professor)_, due to his mastery of all forms of shinobi combat as well as his vast knowledge on jutsu and even he couldn't think of one that would cause the described damage. Though, he suspected a wind based jutsu.

"What about the unconscious one?"

"It seems he has been hit by a weakened version of the attack. He's completely beaten up, but still breathing. We brought him to the ANBU headquarters. However, he appears to be in a comatose state and has not yet reacted to any of our efforts to wake him up." Tenzō responded.

"Is there something else?"

"Yes, giant footprints. They look human shaped and probably belong to some sort of summon." (There are giant human-like summons. For example Tayuya's Doki)

'This will need to be investigated', Hiruzen groaned inwardly. Investigations meant a lot of paperwork.

"Thank you, you can go now."

Shortly after his dismissal someone knocked on the door and Hiruzen ordered the person to enter. It was another ANBU, her identity quickly revealed due to her long purple hair. As Tenzō and Yūgao passed each other they acknowledged the other with a nod. She and Tenzō are currently the two most skilled ANBU he had under his command. Yūgao's kenjutsu is unrivaled within the village. Only Itachi was able to beat her in a kenjutsu only match, but needed the help of his **_Sharingan_** and at that time he was just thirteen years old.

This day was getting even worse. "Sigh. Who attacked him this time?", he asked after Tenzō closed the door behind him, having activated the privacy seals again, already suspecting Naruto has gotten himself into trouble again. Yūgao would only come to him earlier than scheduled if she had to arrest people who tried to harm the boy.

"No one attacked him this time Hokage-sama. Naruto met a suspicious stranger on top of the Hokage Monument, who, after he conversed with Naruto, gave him a scroll and vanished from the face of earth."

Hiruzen scowled and leaked a tiny amount of his killing intent. "No one simply vanishes into thin air and why didn't your squad stop Naruto, if the stranger was suspicious?! You are responsible for his safety!"

"He was approaching him too fast and we...", glad her mask hid her shame "...didn't scout ahead." Most ANBU simply saw guarding Naruto as their job and would never even lift a finger to rescue him outside their working hours. Initially she thought the same way, but after spending so many years guarding him she saw that he was not the monster the majority of the village believes him to be, just an innocent boy who wants nothing more than recognition and love.

"I never expected such a rookie mistake from someone with your flawless records, Yūgao.", he scolded. "This will have consequences for you and your squad." After calming himself and taking a deep breath he continued "Tell me about the stranger. What made him suspicious?"

"He was about seven meters tall and infiltrated the village undetected.", she responded. A man of this size would have been reported by ANBU or the gate guards through the radio.

Hiruzen eyebrows rose up in astonishment. The Sandaime Raikage was a big man, but would look like a dwarf standing next to this man. More concerning than that was the fact that he passed the detection barrier, surrounding the village in form of a bubble, undetected. Only a selected group of people who know the right combination of hand seals, namely the elders including himself, the _Densetsu no Sannin (Legendary Three Ninja)_ and ANBU captains could pass it undetected. Furthermore, extremely fast-moving individuals like the Yondaime Raikage A in his **_Raiton no Yoroi (Lightning Style Armour)_** or **_Jikūkan Ninjutsu (Space-Time Ninjutsu)_** proficient shinobi as for instance the deceased Nidaime Hokage Tobirama Senju could bypass the sphere as well.

"And what about the scroll?", he inquired.

"Naruto took it and is currently on his way home."

"Resume your duties, Yūgao. I will personally take care of this." Yūgao complied and used the **_S_****_hunshin no Jutsu (Teleportation Jutsu)_** to leave the office. It was only allowed to use that jutsu to get out of it, but never into it or the Hokage's bodyguards would swiftly decapitate whoever was foolish enough to do this and ask questions later.

Hiruzen deactivated the privacy seals, stood up and made himself on his way to Naruto's apartment with his bodyguards following close behind.

* * *

Naruto took his time walking home and enjoyed the fresh night air filling his lungs. It was already dark, stars illuminated the heaven and the village shone in the lights of the lanterns.

"I can't wait to see what's inside. Hopefully some super awesome jutsu!", he said to himself as he almost reached the door of his apartment.

He opened the door and was surprised to see that the lights were turned on. Naruto carefully walked inside, putting all his skill in stealth to use. Whoever dared to break into his apartment would pay dearly!

"I see you are back, Naruto", a soft voice greeted him. He almost jumped at being caught and turned his head to the source of it.

"Jiji?! How did you get in here?", he asked clearly confused and a bit startled.

"Have you forgotten? I have the second key to your apartment in case you lose yours."

He almost facepalmed. How could he forget that? He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment with his free hand and replied "Oh. Hehe, guess I forgot that. Not that I'm not happy to see you but why are you here?"

"I came here because of the scroll you carry with you. May I take a look at it?", he answered sternly and the last part sounded more like an order than a request.

Never before has Naruto seen this side of his Jiji and was a bit frightened. He really hoped he wasn't in trouble. "O-Ok"

"_**Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Jutsu)**_" A clone of Hiruzen emerged out of a cloud of smoke.

"Wow! How did you do that?! That's so cool. Can you teach me?"

"Give my clone the scroll Naruto.", he said in a voice that made the boy flinch, showing his seriousness. Naruto obeyed and gave the clone his scroll, who left the apartment wordlessly afterwards.

"Don't worry if everything is fine my clone will come back shortly."

"Just what is going on? And how did you know that I have this scroll?"

"One of my ANBU saw you carrying it and told me.", he told him the half-truth. It wouldn't benefit their relationship if he told him that he let ANBU watch over him 24/7. "And to answer your question I'm concerned about your safety."

"Am I in danger?"

"I don't know yet. We will have to wait, be patient."

A few seconds in silence passed. The clone finally returned with the scroll and gave it the original before it dispelled itself, thus Hiruzen received the clone's memories.

'Good. There was no trap seal on the scroll.' An old, but effective method to assassinate someone. A popular method is to plant multiple paper bombs into a scroll or turn the scroll itself into a giant one and deliver it as a letter to the clueless victim, who would activate the trigger as soon as he opened the scroll. Nowadays a quite obsolete method and relatively easy to neutralize, though still in use. Sometimes more important scrolls are modified in such a manner or had other seal traps as a safeguard to protect the information written in them.

"Is everything alright? Can I have it back now.", Naruto said, growing more and more annoyed.

"Everything seems fine Naruto. I just have to take a look at it myself. Please sit down and wait until I'm finished.", his voice changed back to its grandfatherly tone. He went to the kitchen, sat down, put the scroll on the table and began to read.

Naruto sat down on the other side of the table and watched him intently. About a minute passed before Hiruzen stopped reading any further, staring at the scroll unbelievingly.

'The training methods are insane and the descriptions of these six powers are ridiculous. To perform such feats without the use of chakra is impossible, _unless_ you devote your life entirely to taijutsu. Besides, no one would train and torture his body like this... except Maito Gai.' The training of said jōnin is considered torture, even among the elites. No one doubts the results, but even his warm-up exercises left the average jōnin half-dead.

"What's written in that scroll Jiji and please can I keep it? Please!", he pleaded. Naruto didn't knew why his Jiji was so interested in his scroll all of a sudden and hoped he wouldn't take it away. It was the first gift that he hasn't received from Teuchi, Ayame or his Jiji. That alone made it precious to him and he would fight for it, even if any resistance would be futile.

"This scroll contains a taijutsu style called _Rokushiki_. You can keep it and train yourself in this style if it means that much to you." Naruto smiled brightly at that and looked relieved.

It wouldn't be beneficial for Hiruzen or the village to take the scroll away from the boy. He doubted anyone could master this style anyway. 'Hmm but who knows. When Minato first told me he created his own version of Tobirama-sensei's _**Hiraishin no Jutsu **_**_(Flying Thunder God Technique)_** I couldn't believe my ears. Maybe you can prove me wrong and make the impossible possible, just like your father did.'

"Promise me something Naruto." That statement got him Naruto's full attention. "If you really go through with this and manage to learn it then hide your true skills. At least until you become a genin. Let others underestimate you. It will give you an advantage later on."

Naruto looked Hiruzen directly in his eyes and nodded. "I promise and I go never back on my word, dattebayo."

"I will take my leave now." Hiruzen stood up and as he was almost out of the door he turned his head to bid him farewell "Sleep well, Naruto."

"You too, Jiji", he exclaimed and waved him goodbye.

As soon as he left Naruto changed into his nightgown and set his alarm clock, so he would wake up early to train. His excitement kept him awake and let him only rest for a few hours.

* * *

The next morning arrived and after doing his morning routine Naruto was ready for any challenge. He now stood in front of the scroll and pointed at it with a determined gaze. "I will earn everyone's respect! I'm ready for anything you throw at me, dattebayo!" After his declaration he sat down and began to read the scroll.

_If you read this scroll you are considered to be one of the best... _Naruto looked up and grinned from ear to ear "I always knew I was awesome!"_ ...but you will soon realize that this means nothing from now on! By learning Rokushiki you will be pushing yourself past what you and others view as strength and mold your body into a living weapon. You will reach the limits of the human body and surpass them through rigorous training and mental discipline. Before you actually start training keep this always in mind. You must drink, eat and sleep plenty, otherwise your body will collapse._

Naruto's eyes widened and he paled a bit. Was it really that hard to learn this Rokushiki? He resumed reading.

_...Rokushiki is based on six techniques: Soru, __Geppō_, Rankyaku, Shigan, Tekkai and Kami-e. Each one has advanced versions of itself. There exists a seventh secret technique as well, named _Rokuōgan_, which combines the principles of all six into one lethal attack. Don't even attempt it before you have obtained absolute mastery of ALL six or you will either seriously injure yourself, become a cripple or die!

Naruto gulped. Just what has he gotten himself into?

_...Six techniques alone don't make up an entire martial arts style and won't guarantee your victory. Therefore you are going to learn several katas to block, dodge and strike your opponents. You will also learn everything necessary about the human body in order to kill, wound or paralyze your targets. Furthermore, you will learn how to meditate_

Naruto stopped and groaned. He has to study anatomy _and_ meditate. They did that at the academy sometimes and it's so boring. You have to sit still the whole time and do nothing.

_... ,because a focused mind and a calm spirit is necessary to master Rokushiki and to keep your cool in the heat of the battle. Another requirement for most of the more advanced techniques is that you master Seimei Kikan to the best of your abilities. Seimei Kikan will allow you to control your bodily functions at will._

At this Naruto look confused. 'What does that mean? I already control my body at will, don't I?'

_...From now on your legs are the most valuable part fo your body apart from your head and heart. Rokushiki relies heavily on the strength in your legs, so you will be training them the most! Even if a Rokushiki master loses his arms he's still a deadly fighter, but if he or she loses a leg his or her ability to fight becomes very restricted. Don't think an artificial leg could ever replace your own! If you lose a leg your career as a Rokushiki master is over. The following excercise will give your legs enough strength to handle Soru, ____Geppō_ and Rankyaku...

* * *

Naruto was lying on the ground on the top of the Hokage Monument with stones lying around him. Sweat covered his body all over and he was panting heavily from exertion. His body ached everywhere and his bones felt like they were on fire. Never before was he been so tired from a training excercise. He completed the first task described in the scroll. It sounded so simple, but it was much harder to do in reality.

_...This excercise has several stages and will cover multiple aspects of your training. It will strengthen your legs as well as your arms and increase your speed, agility and stamina significantly. The first stage requires that you run five miles in total, while carrying some weight with both your arms. What you carry doesn't matter. You can carry either weights, wood or stones that are lying around. It only must feel heavy to you and not hinder your movements. Run zigzag between trees, run up hills and if possible climb up stairs. Once you can run this route as if it feels nothing more than a light jog to you start kicking off the ground two times with each step and carry additional 50 pounds strapped on your back. When you accomplish this increase the weight on your back and the frequency of your kicks step by step until you can carry 100 pounds on your back and if you can kick off the ground ten times in the blink of an eye you will have mastered Soru._

_You can't begin to learn ______Geppō_ or Rankyaku if you can't kick off the ground at least six times, eight is recommended. Both techniques require extreme leg strength. Rankyaku requires you to kick the air at extremely high speed and strength in order to send out a sharp compressed air blade, making it a fearsome mid to long-range attack, that provided with enough force can even cut through steel.

_________Geppō_ just requires you to kick the air with tremendous force. It will enable you to levitate, thus being useful to evade attacks in mid-air as well as to perform aerial assaults and even in non-combat situations such as to pass impassable obstacles. Using _________Geppō in conjunction with Soru is possible. It's called Kamisori, a technique, which allows you to move extremely fast in three dimensions by using Soru in a zigzag motion in midair. Performing it even for a short burst of speed will put your body under immense strain and can damage your legs severely. Very few individuals in history, usually being blessed with a naturally far more powerful body than normal humans, were able to use it continuously over an extended period of time. _

Naruto found a perfect route through the village with his knowledge of its layout, which he gained during his time on the streets, fulfilling all criterias. The stairs leading to the top of the Hokage Monument were the last obstacle. He almost collapsed with the stones he carried in his arms at three-quarters of this agonizing route, but discovered that he had unexpected reserves left he never knew about thanks to one particular incident.

* * *

**Flashback**

He almost completed three-quarters of the way, occasionally being laughed at and could feel his legs and arms giving out. Suddenly, he saw an odd man in front of him, wearing a green jumpsuit, orange leg warmers, a flak jacket and a red forehead protector tied around his waist, identifying him to be a ninja, moving towards him. He had his hair in a bowl cut, the thickest eyebrows he had ever seen and was walking on his hands.

Both looked at each other for some time before the man all of a sudden began to cry, took one of his hands from the ground, so his body was resting entirely on his other arm, clenched it into a fist and started to shout.

**"Such youth! It warms my heart to see the flames of youth burn this brightly in the next generation!"**, he cried to the heavens, feeling the need to hug a mini clone of himself in front of a setting sun and gave Naruto a thumbs up, winked and smiled at him, showing his pearl white teeth, which produced a ping noise.

'I need to get out of here!', Naruto panicked and found strength hidden deep within him to sprint past the man in a blur and complete the last quarter in a time Rob Lucci would be proud of.

**"What incredible energy! This boy will come far in his life! His flames of youth are burning like an inferno!"**, he screamed and resumed his training schedule with a wide smile at such a display of youthfulness.

**Flashback End**

* * *

Naruto needed about ten minutes to catch his breath and wiped his brow with the back of his hand to get rid of the sweat covering it. Time to resume his training.

_... Meditation is a crucial part of developing a calm and focused mind and necessary to master Seimei Kikan. Normal humans cannot control all their bodily functions willingly, but in order to become a true Rokushiki master you must surpass this limit too and learn how to make your body obey your will. To do that you will need to synchronize your mind and body, becoming one with it. Clear your mind of all unneccessary thoughts. Focus on the rhythm of your body and the movement of the air around you. No one can tell how long you will need to master this or if you even can. It is all up to you._

_All this is essential to learn Kami-e and Tekkai. By using Kami-e you make your body go limp in order to avoid attacks by__ moving along the air displaced by a strike. Imagine to sway back and forth like__ a piece of paper in the air_. Anticipating attacks is also an important part of this technique, giving you more time to dodge.

_ Tekkai is the exact opposite of __Kami-e_. You harden your muscles and skin to the extend of iron. To achieve this you must tense your muscles to the extreme, be focused, control your breath and get rid of all your unneccessary movements. Imagine to become like a stone, calm and motionless, defying the forces of nature and unable to feel pain. But always keep in mind that your body still consists of flesh and blood! Meaning that even with Tekkai active your body will still be affected by heat, cold or chemicals. If the attack has enough force behind it or you lose focus even for a second your Tekkai won't hold.

_Only one Rokushiki user in recorded history was able to master Tekkai to such a degree that he could maintain it active while being able to move simultaneously and even developed his own fighting style, Tekkai Kenpō, exploiting the advantages gained from a permanent Tekkai in battle. Not only are you always protected, but the potency of your own blows increases tremendously as well, due to the __solidity of your musculature while using this technique_. The secret lies in the combined use of Tekkai and ___Kami-e____._

It sounded very complicated to become one with your body, nevertheless he had to try. So he sat down in a lotus position, took slow breaths and closed his eyes. He was never good at sitting still and always found meditation to be boring, but after that ordeal he endured previously he welcomed the calmness. It appears that he had spent most of his hyperactive energy in the last excercise. Naruto tried to do as instructed and focused entirely on his body and the air around him. He could feel the rhythm in which his heart beat and felt his chest rise and fall.

He wasn't sure how long he remained like this, but the sun was still up and he felt much better than before, though his muscles still ached a bit. Ignoring the unpleasant feeling he stretched his body and went to Ichiraku's, where he ate more ramen than ever before, noting that if this went on he would have to hunt again or else he would spend all his savings for food in no time.

* * *

The next part of today's training consisted of doing katas shown on the colored pictures in the scroll, while balancing a bottle filled with water on his head. It required a lot of concentration not to spill the water, but as much as he tried he still slipped about half of it.

In the pictures a man in a black suit was performing the stances. He had his wavy hair tied in a ponytail, arched eyebrows and a goatee. This man looked cool, confident and _very_ strong in his opinion, however, what disturbed him were his eyes, so cold and calculating, boring into your soul and sending chills down his spine. Besides, he somehow felt a connection with this guy, as if they had something in common. Naruto toyed with the idea of getting such a suit too, but a part of it would have to be orange.

Studying the human body was also part of his training. The scroll showed two large pictures of the human body, one male and the other female, their front and back next to each other. Both were covered with colored dots. It explained in all detail that red dots show points you have to strike if you want to kill your opponent such as the eight vital points larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney and heart. Yellow dots mark parts that, if hit, cause fatal wounds, which if not taken care of within two to fifteen minutes would cause death. Green dots display parts that you can strike to inflict excruciating pain, wound, paralyze or make your enemy lose conciousness without risking the target's life. Naruto must memorize all of them and their impact on the human body.

* * *

Currently, he was chopping wood for a while now with an axe which he had _borrowed_ from one of the local rangers. He would give it back later since the man had five of them and wouldn't miss one. It was already getting late.

_... Chopping wood will increase the strength in your arms and shoulders, making your punches faster and more powerful._

"Phew. I can't stop now... Huff... I still have one... Huff... excercise to do."

Naruto was tired... so tired, his head hurt and his muscles made him a thousand promises of pain to come, but he couldn't stop training now as long as the sun was still up. He had a goal! Nothing worth having comes without sacrifice. He knelt down and began to dig in the ground with his bare hands.

'Unbelievable. After such ordeals he still has the strength to go on?!', Yūgao thought in astonishment while hiding in the shadows. This boy was definitely something else!

_By digging the ground with your bare hands you will increase the strength of your hands and fingers required to punch hard and perform Shigan. You basically focus all your force into your finger(s) and push it(them) into a target at very high speed. It can be useful to either cripple, mortally wound or kill your opponent instantly, if aimed for the right spot. In the future, you are going to do one-fingered push-ups and lift weights with your fingers to further strengthen them and in order to get your fingers used to penetration you will jab them into sand, gravel, wood and finally solid rock. Once you can do all that without flinching from the pain you have mastered Shigan._

Half an hour of digging later, losing some fingernails in the process, he summoned his last reserves and made himself on his way home. This training regime took a toll on him.

* * *

Naruto arrived home and was utterly exhausted, mentally and physically. He reeked of sweat, his head hurt from all the information he had to absorb and his muscles ached. After closing the door, not even bothering to turn the lights on he dragged himself to his bed. He didn't even change into his nightgown and simply threw himself onto it, slipping almost immediately into the realm of sweet unconsciousness, drool already forming on the corner of his mouth.

Inside Naruto's mind however his tenant was fully awake. Kurama was currently walking circles in his cage out of boredom. Ten years, ten years of talking to yourself, sleeping, walking in this tight space and counting the bars of his prison. Hell, he even gave each of them a name.

**'Haven't I suffered enough already? I was trapped countless of years in two hosts and then _Madara_ dared to take control of me again. On top of that I have been sealed again! What have I done to deserve this?! ... Well I might have killed some humans, but why are they building their settlements right at my path anyway. It's their own fault or do they care if they destroy an ant hill and kill its inhabitants?'**

He had no one to talk with. Being imprisoned and all alone was like hell to him. His host would need to contact him first before he could begin to establish a mind link between them and view his memmories. Today however, he noticed something interesting, namely the state his host was in.

**"Just what has my moron of a host done to damage his body like that?"**, he asked aloud and thought about it. The damage done to his body was definitely inflicted by himself. This much he could tell after being imprisoned in two hosts before. Maybe that kid was actually training? That was good! He already feared his host was some useless lazy civilian. What he needed was a strong host, who can take care of himself, thus not dying too early.

If his host died he would die too. Would that be the end of him? Ha no, of course not! His chakra, at least the Yang part that is left of it, would reform after about 6 or 7 years he estimated, but it was _really_ painful to be ripped apart.

**"Curse you _Yondaime Hokage_!"**, he scowled, eyes flaring with rage. He would avoid this ordeal for as long as possible. Enduring this boredom was way better than years in constant unbearable pain. **'I need to strengthen the kid's body further, so he won't die too soon.'**

Unbeknownst to everyone Kurama was boosting the already impressive healing ability of his host with a tiny amount of his chakra immensely while Naruto slept, making his muscles denser and more durable. It wouldn't grant the blonde superhuman strength in an instant, but if he continues to train that rigorously his progress will be accelerated by leaps and bounds.

* * *

**Background information on the scroll:**

It was created to incorporate newly developed Rokushiki styles, like Jabra's Tekkai Kenpō, who was ordered to reveal its secrets, into the CP9 training program, as well as to improve the currently used training methods. The necessary information has been gathered five and a half years ago (One Piece timeline Kuma came from: Shortly after the Thriller Bark arc) from all notable Rokushiki users working for the World Government, meaning that Lucci, Kaku, Kalifa and Blueno haven't left for their undercover mission to Water Seven at this point in time. Martial arts experts from all around the world have completed it shortly after the Enies Lobby arc (bureaucracy and bickering hindered the progress noticeably). Only this one exemplar exists, making it extremely valuable. Therefore Kuma was ordered to deliver it safely to a secret CP9 training camp where it should have been reproduced and afterwards stored in a vault as the original. The copies would have been given to each participant of the program. The trainees don't have instructors who hold their hands. They get a training scroll, a secluded area for themself, have to learn on their own and get tested in certain intervals to monitor their progress as well as to give them hints on how to improve or tell them what they are doing wrong. The students would also spar against each other occasionally. But Kuma took his time, completed other missions incidentally and eventually explored the Naruto world where he met our favourite ninja in training. He's not concerned about consequences, because he has to die anyway and he's sure that it's in good hands. Furthermore, the scroll explains the concepts of Haki.


	3. Road to Genin

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the world government and be under Whitebeard's protection.

**AN:**

**Anonymous reviews:**

_A simple fool:_ Thanks for the compliments. Don't worry, Kurama only cares about his own well-being and freedom. I think the sudden friendship between canon Naruto and Kurama is ridiculous. He killed his parents, after the genjutsu was broken and Naruto doesn't seem to care.

_Red:_ Not only do I hate the "shadow clone super training" shortcut too, but it would also seriously overpower Naruto in this story. Imagine Rob Lucci making 1000 clones of himself in his fight with Luffy.

This chapter was difficult to write. Guess I experienced my first writers block and it took a lot of time until I was satisfied with it. Nevertheless I hope I did a decent job and wrote my first fight scene realistically. I'm no doctor! So if my assessments of the injuries are completely false contact me please.

**Published:** 02.04.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts' ; **'Inner Sakura talking'**

"Human speech" ; **"Shouting"**

**_Jutsu/Rokushiki technique_**

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 3 - Road to Genin**

A now twelve-year-old Naruto, dressed in his usual bright orange jumpsuit, was grinning in anticipation, while jumping from roof to roof towards the academy. The day has finally come! Today the graduation exam is being held. Once passed he could finally drop this mask of stupidity, which he wore in public for almost two and a half years. Naruto promised his Jiji to hide his skills and Naruto Uzumaki _always_ keeps his promises. He figured out that the best way to do it would be to simply continue the way he acted in the past, thus not looking suspicious to anyone. What basically meant to hold the title of dead last and class clown.

Looking back at his old self he could only shake his head in disgust. 'I really was nothing more than an annoying loudmouth, shouting that I would become Hokage, even though I didn't understand what it truly meant to be a leader. I'm glad Kuma opened my eyes.' He would never forget the conversation he had with this man and his kindness. Naruto doubted he would have progressed this much without the scroll, which he hid well in his apartment and learned much more from it than he ever had at the academy.

Naruto made great progress in his training to master **_Soru (Shave)_**. He could now kick off the ground five times, with 60 pounds strapped on his back, while running his usual route through Konoha in the early morning hours and not be entirely exhausted afterwards. Every now and then he came across this weird man again, Maito Gai he learned was his name or _Konoha no Kedakaki Aoi Mōjū (____Konoha's Sublime Green Beast of Prey)_ as he liked to introduce himself. The first times he was reluctant to speak to him, but after summoning up some courage he briefly conversed with him. This man was actually quite nice and even gave him weights to heat his _flames of youth_, he said. Whatever that meant. Anyway, he was glad to have received them, because they made his training much more comfortable.

Moreover, Naruto completed his studies in anatomy, could perform the katas without slipping a single drop of water from the bottle, which he balanced on top of his head and chopped wood like a well-oiled machine. His training in **_Shigan (Finger Pistol) _**was promising as well. Naruto tested the fruits of his labor on a dead rabbit, which he caught beforehand and pierced deep into its flesh, but it wasn't sufficient enough. Only if he was able to pierce through thick armor and the flesh it protected his **_Shigan (Finger Pistol)_** would be considered adequate and he already struggled with thick wood. During this training he sprained his fingers so often that he lost count.

His progress in **_Tekkai (Iron Mass)_** and _**Kami-e (Paper Art)**_ was only moderate at best. There was only so much you can do while training on your own to improve your reflexes, dodging speed and resistance towards punches. Naruto constructed traps that, when triggered, unleashed a volley of small rocks at him and also set up bags filled with sand, hanging from ropes, to train his body to take as well as dodge hits, however, it couldn't replace the experience you gain out of a spar against competent adversaries. Only real combat could truly improve those abilities. Since he trained in secret, always making sure to shake off his persistent pursuer Hinata, he had no one he could ask for help. Teuchi and Ayame were obviously out of question. Jiji was too busy running the village and he didn't trust this Maito Gai fellow completely yet.

The only techniques he made very little to no progress were **_Geppō __(Moonwalk)_** and **_Rankyaku (_****_Storm Leg_**), mainly because he still lacked the necessary leg strength. Naruto tried to perform them several times and failed miserably, only succeeding in creating a weak gust of wind. One time, while practicing **_Rankyaku (Storm Leg)_**, he even teared the muscles of his right leg apart, cursing like a sailor and roaring in pain after that incident.

Luckily, some ANBU were close by. Among them was that purple haired women again, who always rescued him from aggressive villagers. In contrast to the other ANBU he never sensed any ill-will from her directed at him. In his early years he often thought of her as his guardian angel. She provided first aid and carried him to the hospital, where he had been thrown out unceremoniously once his leg was healed in record time. He should have listened to the recommendation in the scroll and practiced the techniques when he could kick off the ground eight times.

Naruto also made sure not to neglect kunai and shuriken practice. He used the one's he received from his Jiji on his tenth birthday, which he took good care of and made sure they were always sharp. It might come in handy later on and good aim was important for the efficiency of the more advanced **_Shigan (Finger Pistol)_** techniques as well. Even though some might think that he tortures his body he actually felt better than ever before in his life. His mind and body were at peace with each other.

All in all, he made excellent progress in developing his mind and body over the past two years, but he believed that he could have progressed much more, if it wasn't for the academy shortening his training. He had to become stronger! He had a goal and there was still so much to learn.

* * *

Much about Naruto has changed since he started his training in Rokushiki. At first glance an observer wouldn't see a big difference. Outwardly, he still looked pretty much the same as before, except having grown a few inches, though he was still considered small for his age, despite forcing himself to eat more _accursed vegetables_ and gaining much more muscle mass. Not that anyone noticed this due to his baggy jumpsuit covering his figure. Yet he wasn't bulky, instead his figure was very well-defined for a twelve-year-old boy.

However, it was his mindset that changed the most, almost doing a 180 degree turn. Naruto became a much calmer and collected individual. The only ones he revealed his true self to were Teuchi and Ayame, if he was the only customer at their stand, eating his bowls of ramen like a civilized person, savouring the taste, instead of inhaling it like he did in the past and his Jiji, during one of his rare visits. They weren't particularly fond of the changes in his behaviour. The three felt that their little Naruto grew up too fast and lost his childlike innocence. In front of others Naruto would still act as an immature loud brat with no manners, who had only his next prank in mind, which he still enjoyed doing from time to time.

'Hehe I have got quite some acting skills.', he complimented himself. His act was really convincing in his opinion. The only times he almost lost himself was during sparring matches with Sasuke. It was so tempting to wipe that arrogant look from that bastard's face, however, he held back and fought with the corrupted version of the academy style, which his taijutsu teacher Mizuki showed him, losing the matches purposely.

Naruto's expression darkened. 'To think I believed this man tried to help me. Mizuki-_sensei_ obviously wanted me to die during my first real mission.' In the past he held Mizuki in high regards for taking care of him more than the other students and therefore felt betrayed by his actions. That was the reason why Naruto became even more paranoid and untrusting towards others than he already was due to his past experiences. Always questioning second motives of a friendly gesture. Bad traits for a civilian, but very important ones for a successful shinobi.

Resisting the urge to use the Rokushiki katas, which he had drilled into his head for countless of hours, to counter or dodge Sasuke's attacks wasn't easy, but he developed a lot of mental discipline and managed to suppress his reflexes. Besides, Sasuke wasn't fighting him seriously too, probably thinking he wasn't worth the effort or something along that, if his usual grunt at the end of the matches was any indication. He actually had to feign pain when that bastard punched him. To be honest, he barely felt any of his puny punches.

Nevertheless some of his characteristic's remained. For instance his obsession for ramen, his love for the color orange and the people precious to him, his verbal tick when he was very excited or determined and his major dislike for Sasuke. He knew it was irrational to dislike him so much, but he couldn't stand Sasuke's attitude.

* * *

'Just one more time I have to act like a fool', Naruto thought as he landed gracefully next to the entrance. He was already ten minutes late on purpose to suit his reputation. Walking up to the door of his classroom Naruto opened it without knocking and was greeted with a disapproving glance from Iruka, who stopped writing something on the blackboard and turned to face him fully. He was a man of average build, dressed in Konoha's standard chūnin attire, with dark eyes and black hair, that he kept in a ponytail. Everything about his appearance literally screamed _average_, but he was far from being so. It wasn't the scar running across the bridge of his nose that made him unique, no, it was the fact that he belonged to the small group of adults who view Naruto as a human being.

"How nice of you to grace us with your presence Naruto. I think now is the right time to teach you and all the others a lesson. Punctuality is an important part of a ninjas life. As punishment we are going to review the **_Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Jutsu)_** now.", the angry teacher scolded his students.

The whole class erupted in groans. "Iruka-sensei! Please, come on! Don't be so mean! It's our last day and in two hours we are going to take the exams!", Kiba tried to argue, followed by an approving bark of Akamaru, who rested comfortably inside his partner's jacket.

"For once he's right! Why do we have to suffer because of that _idiot_?!", Sakura followed swiftly in a voice which almost made Iruka cringe and woke up a confused Shikamaru. Others seemingly wanted to follow their example, but Iruka was quick to silence any further arguments with the help of his intimidating **_Big Head no Jutsu_**, that he invented himself, something he was very proud of, especially when seeing how effective it was.

**"Silence! **...You can thank Naruto later. Now everyone, line up and transform into a _perfect_ copy of myself.", he barked and as everyone got up they send Naruto a dirty look, except for Hinata, who just fixed her gaze onto the wooden floor and tapped her two index fingers together.

Sometime later it was Sasuke's turn, who performed the technique flawlessly. "Sasuke-kun is so amazing!", Sakura and her rival Ino exclaimed at the same time with their hands folded together and hearts visible in their eyes. That statement was followed by shouts of agreement from his other fangirls and envious looks from most of the boys.

'It's beyond me why the girls are all over him for performing an _E-rank_ jutsu.' Naruto mentally rolled his eyes. He was far better at the **_Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Jutsu)_** than Sasuke. His advanced version was actually solid! Aside from that he was a boy in puberty and subconsciously envied the female attention Sasuke got, like most of the other boys did too.

Well, he got more attention from Hinata than he would like. Over time he realized that Hinata seemed to have a _huge_ crush on him that bordered on obsession. Too bad for her he didn't feel the same way. Naruto seriously wanted to give it a try since he hated the loneliness in his life and she actually wasn't bad-looking either.

He gave up on Sakura a long time ago, after he saw similar hatred for him in her eyes that he witnessed daily in the villagers, but still asked her out for dates like he always did in the past to maintain his cover, only to get punched in the face with tremendous force. Sakura can throw punches that put most guys in his age group to shame.

Four months ago Naruto dropped his mask and approached Hinata after school when she was alone, which she was most of the time. He was a bit nervous and had sweaty palms. In contrast to popular belief the real Naruto was somewhat shy on the inside. However, before he could talk to her she turned red and fainted. Probably due to the fact that they were very close, all alone and his intense eye contact combined. Naruto didn't gave up so easily and tried it the day afterwards again, then again... and again, before he got fed up and stopped. What kind of relationship would that be? A kiss would probably let her fall into a coma.

**"Earth to Naruto!"**, Iruka's shout brought him out of his musings. "Stop daydreaming. It's your turn, come forward.", he ordered. Naruto complied and suddenly grinned mischievously, adopting a look Iruka knew all to well from his own past. In his childhood Iruka was a renowned prankster. 'Oh no! His prankster side is coming out again! Just what is he up to?!'

Iruka's train of thoughts was interrupted by Naruto's shout. **"_Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Jutsu)_!"** A puff of smoke appeared and where Naruto once was stood a truly gorgeous and well-developed blond women in a sexy pose... naked! Only very thin plumes of smoke covered her intimate areas. "Iruka-_sensei_. I was such a naughty girl. Are you going to _discipline_ me?", the woman purred in a seductive voice with her right index finger on her bottom lip, winked, and flew him a kiss afterwards with the same hand.

His performance resulted in various reactions. Iruka was blown away by a massive nose bleed along with Kiba. The other boys had deep blushes covering their faces, except for Sasuke, who had a look of indifference plastered on his face. The girls on the other hand were most displeased and tightened their fists, gritted their teeth and veins throbbed on their foreheads, even Hinata couldn't approve of her crushes action.

* * *

In Yugakure, a certain white-haired _Gama Sennin__ (Toad Sage)_ stopped his research for a brief moment. Something he rarely did. He had a similar proud feeling like back then when his prized student Minato developed the **_Rasengan_**. Only this time his pervert senses were tingling too and he smiled brightly. Someone must have created a perverted technique! Hopefully he would see it someday, so he could get some inspiration for his new book.

* * *

Another puff of smoke indicated that the technique has been canceled. The girls looked determined to murder Naruto, but before the situation could escalate Iruka regained his composure in time and yelled **"Naruto! Don't do that ever again!"**

"Haha whats wrong sensei? I did a _much_ better **_Henge _****_no Jutsu _**(**_Transformation Jutsu_**) than Sasuke, didn't I? You seemed to have liked it.", Naruto replied innocently with his eyes closed, a wide smirk on his face and his hands behind the back of his head. He was extremely proud of himself. With the help of the scroll, from which he learned everything important about the female anatomy, he completed his first self-made technique, which he named fittingly **_Oiroke no Jutsu (Sexy Jutsu)_**. How many academy students could claim for themselves to have created their own jutsu? Of course he knew it was immature, but his prankster side still existed within him. You can't be serious all the time or you end up like Sasuke, something he definitely didn't want to.

**"You don't seem to understand the situation you are in! You failed the exam already two times and if you fail once more today you will get thrown out of the ninja program! You failed this test, hence you score even lower now! What means that you must perform absolute perfectly in the final exam to pass!"**, he shouted from the top of his lungs in order to finally get through that thick skull of his student.

It was awkward for him to teach the boy, who contained the beast that killed his parents. The Hokage, who together with Mizuki managed to get him out of his depression, which followed his parents death, often conversed with him about Naruto and requested that he should judge the boy for himself, not by rumors. Iruka respected the Sandaime Hokage greatly and honored his request because of that. After teaching Naruto for months he came to the conclusion that he wasn't the monster everyone thought he is and found out they shared some similarities. That's the reason why he wants Naruto to pass and continue to pursue his dream of becoming Hokage, but with his grades it seems unlikely he would graduate.

Naruto wasn't concerned. True, he took the exams two times already, because he wanted to become a genin as soon as possible, so he could quit acting like an idiot, but failed them because both times they tested the **_Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Jutsu)_**. Naruto just seemed to have bad luck. A computer randomly selects one of the three standard techniques they would test all the students on that day.

He has gotten better at it over time. His clones didn't lay outright dead on the floor anymore, instead they now stood upright, looked as if they suffered from high fever and clutched their stomachs in pain. However, this time Jiji assured him he would be tested in another technique, after he told him about his dilemma.

Eventually, everyone calmed down and moved back to their seats. Iruka left the room and shortly afterwards came back together with Mizuki to announce in what the students are going to be tested in. Iruka coughed to get his student's attention and began to speak.

"Alright everyone, listen up! To graduate you must perform the **_Bunshin no Jutsu (Clone Jutsu)_**", at this Naruto looked surprised and Mizuki had to suppress a smirk. He was in charge of the computer and manipulated the result beforehand, so Naruto would fail again. It was important for his plan after all. Once that nuisance failed he would approach him and tell him about the _secret_ way to still pass the exam, shifting the blame on him. "...When I call your name follow us to the next room. Naruto you are first.", he said and fixed his gaze on Naruto, who stood up and followed him wordlessly.

Sakura smiled and _Inner Sakura_ was celebrating. Her inner self punched the space in front of her and began screaming inside her head **'Finally, one less obstacle. That perverted idiot will fail and won't be standing between me and Sasuke-kun anymore. In the end true love triumphs, shannaro!' **To be honest Sakura was slightly concerned due to that voice in her head, but told nobody about it. She didn't want others to think she was crazy or something. Apart from her _slightly_ bigger forehead she was perfectly normal... right?

Iruka passed the next room and both, Mizuki as well as Naruto looked a bit confused at this. "Um Iruka. The students are supposed to be tested in this room", Mizuki reminded his _friend_ and pointed at the room they previously passed.

"No, not Naruto. He's a special case like that Rock Lee kid a year ago, you remember?", Iruka responded, not looking at him, thus not seeing Mizuki's eyes slightly widen in concern "...I received a note from Hokage-sama himself, stating that Naruto will be tested in taijutsu and since you are a taijutsu teacher you will spar with Naruto and I'm going to monitor the match." Mizuki almost exhaled in relief, but managed to suppress the urge. 'This is unexpected, but no need to be concerned. The brat is a failure at taijutsu. I made sure of that after all', he mulled the new situation over and grinned wickedly.

* * *

The trio arrived at the backyard of the academy. No one was in the vicinity, so nobody could interfere. It was a rather wide fenced area where the students could safely practice their ninjutsu and improve their throwing skills. Several logs, used to practice the **_Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution Jutsu)_** or as targets, were lying all around them.

"Now, I want you both to listen carefully as I explain the rules Hokage-sama has set. This match will be a taijutsu _only_ match. Mizuki take off your armored vest and lay _all_ your concealed weapons down here next to me.", Iruka, now completely serious, ordered him to do, who complied.

Suddenly, Naruto also moved calmly to the spot he was pointing at. "Naruto what are you doing you...", he stopped when he saw Naruto was pulling out several kunai and shuriken out of his jumpsuit and pouch. "Naruto! Students are not allowed to bring their own weapons with them to the academy!", he eyed Naruto disapprovingly, who didn't react to his outburst at all and continued "Sigh. Since it is your last day as my student, no matter the outcome of this match, I will let that slide."

Once both have finished they turned to him and he continued. "...You will fight till one of you gives up, is unable to continue the fight, gets knocked out or I end the match. Of course killing is _prohibited_ and I _will_ interfere before that happens. Mizuki, you will limit yourself to genin level and are not allowed to enhance your movements with chakra. Have you understood the rules.", Iruka asked, whereupon both nodded and moved to face each other. They didn't make the Tairitsu no In (Seal of Confrontation), since this wasn't a spar between academy students. Iruka as well as Mizuki noticed a change in Naruto's demeanor. He looked focused and his expression darkened.

**"Begin!"**, Iruka instructed and both slipped into a defense stance. Mizuki was utterly surprised at Naruto's reaction. 'What is he doing?! I expected him to yell and throw a clumsy punch at me. What kind of stance is that anyway? I'm sure I haven't taught him that.'

Mizuki was now eyeing the stance intently and tried to find any weak points. He moved slowly to the right in order to gauge Naruto's reaction, who adjusted to the new situation immediately. 'Remarkable, his defense is perfect. I can't find a single vulnerable spot. But how is that possible? He's a failure!' he thought and confusion was written all over his face, mixed with a tiny amount of shock at such display of skill.

Eventually, his eyes rested on Naruto's and what he saw made his blood run cold. The usual warmth his eyes held was completely gone, replaced by coldness, which easily rivaled that of a glacier made of the coldest and hardest ice. Mizuki held eye contact though. However, sweat began to form on his brow. He witnessed and fought in many battles before, but he never saw such cold eyes. That boy's stare was truly intimidating! About a minute passed and neither had moved an inch.

Iruka lost his patience "Cough. **I said begin!"**, he urged. That was the last straw, intimidating stare or not, he was the superior warrior and couldn't afford to lose, his life was at stake after all, so he lunged at Naruto with great genin level speed, pulled his right fist back and aimed it at the boy's head.

'Time to put my abilities to the test', Naruto thought. "**_Kami-e (Paper Art)_**", he said in a low voice, barely above a whisper. Putting his training in _**Seimei Kikan (Life Return)**_ to use Naruto relaxed his muscles as much as possible.

Mizuki's fist came crashing down upon him. Naruto bend his body around Mizuki's limb to the right, following the air displaced by the strike, narrowly avoiding the punch. He gripped the surprised chūnin's limb with both of his arms, holding its wrist tightly in his left armpit with astounding strength and much faster than any academy student should be able to Naruto raised his right arm and smashed his elbow right into Mizuki's radial bone, breaking it.

Mizuki howled in agony, his pain-filled cry echoed through the training area and Naruto let go of him, who staggered backwards some distance and clutched his hurting forearm with his left hand, pain, disbelief and fear clearly visible on his face. Iruka was even more taken aback by Naruto's brutality.

"Hmpf Pitiful. Surely you can do better than that Mizuki-_chan_.", Naruto mocked with a grin on his face. He knew that taunting one's opponents could lead them to make mistakes.

Luckily, despite having some experience under his belt, Mizuki was falling for it in his arrogance and anger. He gritted his teeth and scowled at him maliciously, even leaking out his killing intent. **"You demon! I will tear you apart!" **Mizuki roared and was ready to go on. He had endured far worse in his career as a shinobi than a broken bone during a fight. Iruka narrowed his eyes at him for his statement and was on edge, but Mizuki hasn't made any deadly move towards Naruto yet and seemed ready to continue, so the exam was still ongoing.

The angry chūnin, blinded by rage, ignored the pain in his arm and carelessly charged without thinking, leaving Naruto the wide opening he had been waiting for. **"_Soru (Shave)_!"** Naruto yelled and sprinted towards the clueless chūnin at incredible speed, his arm and leg movements were merely blurs to Mizuki and Iruka. However, his upper body was still clearly visible to them, proving he hasn't mastered the technique yet.

The chūnin's eyes widened momentarily, realizing his foolish mistake. He hurriedly tried to dodge, but it was already too late. Mizuki could feel something penetrating the flesh on the left side of his upper chest deeply, damaging his _pectoralis minor_ as well as _pectoralis major muscle_, restricting the mobility of his good arm. However, Naruto didn't stop his assault, instead he quickly followed with a quick jab into Mizuki's solar plexus with the same finger, meeting much more resistance than expected, took his right index finger out, jumped back and called out the name of the technique he used twice in a row. **"**_**Shigan (Finger Pistol)**_**!****"**

The collapsing Mizuki suddenly vanished in a puff of smoke, replaced by a log. Naruto turned to his left where Mizuki laid on his knees, his forehead touching the ground and his arms hung useless at his sides. Before Naruto managed to hit his solar plexus he performed the **_Kawarimi no Jutsu (_****_Substitution Jutsu_**), replacing himself with one of the logs lying around them, thus narrowly avoiding the last strike. That bastard got what he deserved for betraying his trust and sabotaging him. Naruto was satisfied now, having utterly crushed Mizuki's pride. The matter between them has been settled and he wouldn't bear a grudge against that man.

Stunned silence followed. After Iruka shook his head in disbelief he announced "Mizuki is disqualified for using ninjutsu. Winner and thus genin of Konohagakure no Sato is Naruto Uzumaki." and added to himself 'not that Mizuki could put up much of a fight anymore.'

"Argh...you...monster...what have you...done to me?...Iruka...help.", Mizuki whimpered weakly, his breath irregular. He could taste blood in his mouth and fear began to overwhelm his mind. 'This year was my last chance! If I don't present Orochimaru-sama the scroll tomorrow I'm dead!' Iruka quickly ran towards the downed Mizuki to check on him.

While Naruto was cleaning his bloody finger with a handkerchief he tried to calm his teacher. "Don't worry Iruka-sensei. Mizuki is just overreacting. He's panicking due to taste of blood in his mouth and the pain. You will see that his injuries are not lethal.", he reasoned calmly and Iruka mentally confirmed his statement after inspecting the injuries 'Naruto is right. A medic can fix that easily.' and turned to look at his former student in awe. 'Mizuki was handicapped and out of shape, but toying with him like he did is extraordinary for an academy student.'

Iruka noticed his pupil moving towards him after he stored his kunai and shuriken, holding out his hand and looking at him expectantly with. The warmth in his eyes has returned, a small smirk on his face. Iruka blinked for he wasn't sure what the boy wanted from him, but remembered he still hasn't given him his headband. So he reached into his vest, pulled out a shiny black forehead protector and placed it into Naruto's palm, who locked eyes with him.

"Iruka-sensei. Thank you for everything you did for me. Out of all the teachers you were the only one who really took an interest in my education and didn't try to sabotage me in any way, shape or form. I admit that I haven't learned much from your lessons, but I won't forget your kindness.", he told his teacher honestly and gave him one of his true smiles. That was rare! No student in his entire career has ever thanked him. That small gesture warmed his heart and made him smile. However, the fact that he admitted to have learned almost nothing from his lessons in turn hurt his pride as a teacher.

"Wait! Are you saying that Mizuki sabotaged you?", Iruka inquired and looked angrily at Mizuki's beaten form, who seemed to have passed out, either from shock, pain or maybe both, questioning his friendship.

"Well, I still have to continue the exams, how about once I'm finished we meet at the entrance and I invite you to a bowl of ramen.", he offered holding Naruto's shoulder. The boy's love for Ichiraku's ramen wasn't really a secret.

"That would be great, dattebayo!", he responded and once Iruka let go of his shoulder he replaced his goggles with his new shiny forehead protector. He was now a real ninja and would become a legend among legends, surpassing all who came before him! Iruka went to Mizuki, picked him up and brought him to the school's infirmary. The nurses provided first aid and brought him to Konoha's hospital, so he could make a full recovery, where he died on the same night from a morphine overdose (Kabuto's handiwork).

* * *

Hiruzen had watched the one sided fight between Mizuki and Naruto through his crystal ball. He took a deep puff from his pipe and smiled gently, mulling over what he saw 'I'm amazed at your progress Naruto. You are talented, strong and determined, but don't get too cocky. Arrogance was the downfall of so many promising shinobi. You lack experience and have yet to witness the dangers of our world.'

Cancelling the technique he took care of the paperwork on his desk. This generation seemed very promising and will definitely grow into splendid ninja under the right guidance. Together with Iruka he will have to put a lot of thought into the team placements.

* * *

Later that evening, Naruto and Iruka spent their time at Ichiraku's and were enjoying each others company. Iruka asked him some questions about the techniques he used against Mizuki and told Naruto about his prankster days, who was truly surprised at his ingenuity. To think a troublemaker like him actually became a teacher. Today, Naruto not only became a genin, but also found a new person precious to him.


	4. Dropping the Mask

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the world government and be under Whitebeard's protection.

**AN:** More than 200 people have added my story to their favourites! Thank you all for your support. I would also like to thank all who review and follow my story. Such positive feedback motivates me to continue.

**Special thanks** to _Wrathkal_ for sharing his theory on the Rokuōgan with me. It's much better than mine. Also, thanks to _avatoa_ for pointing out that something of his parents heritage must have remained and after I did my homework it's indeed the case.

This chapter at first might give you the impression that I bash Sakura, but rest assured that it's not my intention to do so. I want to develop her character and turn her into an awesome kunoichi. Furthermore, Naruto doesn't wear weights outside of his training (for now at least).

**Anonymous reviews:**

_reishiki:_ I never said Naruto would focus _only_ on his taijutsu as Rock Lee is forced to do. That's why he kept training with his kunai and shuriken. Solely reliance on taijutsu and his bloodline are also Neji's weaknesses. Sorry to disappoint you, but I will use most of the techniques from the CP9 members later on. They are written in the scroll, thus it would be illogical for him not to use them.

_garralis_: Ok I see your point. Let's say the issue is arguable. In my personal opinion it's ridiculous, that he forgave him for killing his _parents_ so quickly and immediately they became best friends afterwards (fist bumps).

**Published:** 02.12.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts' ; **'Inner Sakura talking'**

"Human speech" ; **"Shouting"**

_**Jutsu/Rokushiki technique**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 4 - Dropping the Mask**

"I look so awesome, dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed happily, while he admired his new outfit in a mirror. It resembled that of the man, who performed the katas, on the pictures in the scroll very closely.

Just like him, he now wore a black suit with black leather shoes, a tie and a handkerchief in his left breast pocket. All in all, that alone looked very cool in his opinion. However, he didn't want to just copy the outfit and gave it his own touch. Instead of white Naruto's tie, handkerchief and cuffs were orange and the back of the suit was adorned with a hand-sized red swirl and it's upper left sleeve with a white one, because to him, no outfit was complete without them.

His old jumpsuits would still serve a purpose though. Naruto would still wear them during his rigorous training routines. Years in poverty caused him to never throw away anything still usable. In addition, he didn't want to dirty his new suits unnecessarily.

Two months ago, when he ordered several of those suits in various sizes, which were fairly expensive, at a civilian clothing store nearby the owners gave him an odd look, but who would refuse the special requests of the village's most loved inhabitant, _Sasuke Uchiha_. Knowing that no one would sell him anything better than his jumpsuits he simply transformed himself into that bastard before he entered the store, but retained his original measurements.

Since his modified version of the **_Henge_** was solid and the store was run by civilians they didn't notice his disguise, while they took his measurements. Because it was _Sasuke Uchiha_, who graced them with his presence, the owner's even insisted that he paid just half the price, something he was very glad for, otherwise, he would have spent almost all his savings. The suits were also elastic and highly resistant towards external influences like heat, cold, moisture and physical force, by his request.

His gaze wandered to the shiny black forehead protector and his supply pouch, that contained the standard ninja equipment, on his desk. Naruto tied the former around his forehead and the latter around his right thigh. He was now ready for his first day as a true ninja. Today he would take the first steps towards glory and gain everyone's respect.

Feeling thirsty he walked into the kitchen and took a bottle of milk out of the refrigerator, brought it close to his mouth, but stopped and sniffed at it. "Ew! Rotten milk!", he screamed in disgust at the smell. His senses were far more developed than that of an average human. He threw it into the trash can and took a sip of orange juice instead. Afterwards he left his apartment and set off to the academy.

While walking through the busy streets of Konoha with his hands folded behind the back of his head, for once gaining looks of utter surprise from the people instead of hate-filled glares and occasionally a longing glance from some girls of his age group, he recalled yesterday's events.

* * *

**Flashback**

Naruto, dressed in his orange jumpsuit since he wanted to surprise everyone with his new suit tomorrow, sat in front of his Jiji and one of his secretaries in a room located within the academy. "Is everything alright? Can I go now Jiji?"

Hiruzen checked the ninja registration form one last time and looked intently at the photo, that Naruto brought with him, in which he wore a strange black suit with a serious expression on his face and his forehead protector proudly adorned his brow. 'I have the feeling that with each passing day you are getting more similar to Minato.' He gave the document to his secretary and replied "Everything is perfectly fine, Naruto."

"Alright, I will take my leave then.", the boy said and stood up. He walked up to the door and waved goodbye before he left.

"See you later Jiji."

"Goodbye Naruto."

Shortly afterwards a brown-haired boy, wearing an odd grey hat with a hole, where his hair to stuck out, a yellow shirt with the village symbol in red, grey shorts, and an oversized long blue scarf, bumped into him and simply continued running without apologizing. Turning and watching his retreating form Naruto frowned "Hmpf, rude kid."

"You are still just a kid yourself. Besides, that _kid_ is the _honorable grandson_ of _Hokage-sama_ and you will address him as such. He doesn't need to apologize to the likes of _you_.", an obviously angry male voice spat and Naruto turned around to look at its source. He saw a man, wearing a grey overall, sunglasses and a bandanna covering his hair with a forehead protector attached to its front.

"And you are?" Naruto, not intimidated in the least, calmly asked the man, who adjusted his glasses in response, revealing the hate for him in a glare, which he has seen so often in the eyes of others and has grown accustomed to during his life. But he didn't really need to see it in the man's eyes or hear the tone in his voice to recognize this hatred. Two months ago, Naruto discovered that he somehow could _feel_ the emotions of others in his proximity, with some sort of additional sense.

The man replied in a low threatening voice. "I don't feel like telling you my name dem... troublemaker. Just a piece of advice. Stay away from the _honorable grandson_ or..." Ebisu stopped when he felt the air around the boy shift, who looked at him coldly in the eyes.

"Or what?", the boy scowled. 'This is strange.', Ebisu observed. He saw how the boy normally reacted to such threats from afar, either closing his eyes and smiling at you or telling you that once he became Hokage you would have to look up to him. Was the demon showing his true face now? 'I have to solve this peacefully, before the situation gets out of hand.', he concluded, not wanting to anger the beast further and replied in an apologizing voice "You know... Never mind. Just stay away from him." and went after Konohamaru to scold his rebellious pupil for not listening to his wisdom.

Konohamaru Sarutobi has so much potential, but that wasn't really surprising. He was the grandson of a Kage and originates from the highly respected Sarutobi clan, renown and feared across all the elemental continent for their mastery of the fire element, easily rivaling, if not even surpassing, that of the now almost extinct Uchiha clan and with the help of a teacher like him, who only trained the elites, Konohamaru will surely become the next Hokage and not this dead last dropout. He would make sure of that.

**Flashback End**

* * *

Naruto had enough! Enough of getting pushed around, the fake smiles and pretending to be someone he wasn't. No one would treat him like dirt anymore and he won't be the victim any longer. After all, who would respect somebody who turns the other cheek after getting slapped? At long last he reached the door, leading into his former classroom, opened it, confidently entered the room and took in the reaction of everyone present, who all stopped what they were previously doing to take a look at the intruder.

Naruto received a great variety of responses. Shino simply adjusted his glasses and nodded to himself, as if he had confirmed a theory. Shikamaru just turned his head, which was resting on his desk and muttered "Why are blond people always so troublesome?" before he drifted back into his perfectly quite dream world. The majority of the girls just spared him a short glance and quickly turned back to admire their object of desire, who stared impassively at him, masking his confusion.

'Hmm What's going on? A new ridiculous outfit and demeanour? What are you up to, dope? Are you trying to pull a prank?', Sasuke thought. His gaze rested on Naruto's forehead protector and he shared the same unspoken question as everyone else who saw it, except Shino and Shikamaru 'How did you graduate anyway?'

They had to wait an eternity until Iruka came back to test the next student when they took the graduation exam. All assumed that Naruto cried his eyes out on Iruka's shoulder or argued with the teacher because he failed.

A few girls seemed to be mesmerized by his new look, especially Hinata, who turned red as a tomato. Most of the boys began to snicker at him and some couldn't contain their laughter anymore.

"Pfft. Haha look at him! Hey Naruto! Are you going to propose to Sakura today or why are you wearing that suit?! If that's the case let me tell you something. Spare yourself the shame and leave now before she crushes your heart. You have ridiculed yourself enough already.", Kiba mocked as he wiped some tears from his eyes and Akamaru barked in agreement.

"First, I'm not interested in that pink-haired banshee anymore. Second my outfit isn't ridiculous, it's awesome and third, if you would bother to look at my forehead you would see that I'm a ninja now just like you. I'm here to serve my village to the best of my abilities and take on missions assigned to me.", Naruto countered, pointing his thumb at his forehead protector and walked to the next free seat available, which was next to Sasuke. He sat down, crossed his arms in front of his chest, folded his legs and closed his eyes, waiting for Iruka to arrive.

Everybody's jaw dropped and they looked at him with eyes as wide as saucers, even Akamaru. In the silence that followed someone would have heard the proverbial pin drop. 'N-Naruto-k-kun? is that re-really y-you?' Hinata thought and couldn't believe her ears. Naruto would _never_ say something mean about Sakura. She was tempted to use her _**Byakugan**_, so she could convict this person to be an imposter, but was stopped by the entrance of Sakura and Ino, who apparently raced to the classroom, and their _loud_ argument about who entered the room first.

'Oh no! They passed too?! Will this ever end?! Does this village have any standards at all?' Sasuke cried inwardly and frowned. The creatures known as _fangirls_ are annoying. Well, everyone was annoying to him, however some more than others. They are annoying him far more than even Naruto... well the _old_ Naruto at least. He still wasn't sure what to think of his change, but at least the new one seemed to be quite and that character trait made him much more likable in his opinion than before.

Sakura and Ino spotted their crush and walked up to him. Seeing someone else sitting next to him Sakura roughly tapped the seemingly sleeping person's shoulder. "Hey you! Move aside! I'm going to sit next to Sasuke-kun!", she shrieked to which Ino promptly protested, placing her hands on her hips.

"Hmpf, In your dreams forehead girl! I'm sitting next to him!", she scowled and moved closer to her rivals face. A small crowd was gathering around them, Naruto's actions from before already forgotten.

"First come first serve Ino pig!", Sakura met her gaze fiercely, not intimidated and ready to fight for her crush. **'You will fall before me Ino pig. In the end, true love will triumph. Sasuke-kun is mine! Mine! Shannaro!'**, her inner self threw in, not that anyone aside from Sakura could hear her anyway.

"Would you two be so kind and quite down... _please_!", Naruto told them, while he held his ringing ears.

_"Naruto_? Is that really you?", both exclaimed in a mix of shock and confusion, but this person had to be Naruto since no one else they knew had whisker marks on their face. They were stunned at his appearance, especially Ino, who blushed slightly, barely noticable. She liked pale skinned, dark-haired and dark-eyed boys the most, but was also attracted to blond ones, albeit to a much smaller extend, who aside from members of her own clan were a very rare sight in Konoha. She had to admit that he looked fairly attractive without that hideous bright orange jumpsuit that screamed _Here I am kill me_. Yes, black suited him quite well and his intense ocean blue eyes, reflecting strength and confidence, which she never really noticed before, due to that blinding orange jumpsuit he usually wore, were mesmerizing indeed.

"Hmpf, trying to act as cool as Sasuke-kun to impress me aren't you, _idiot_? It doesn't work! When will you annoying idiot ever learn? For years I tried to _beat_ my point in your head, but you won't listen. You always keep getting in my way. So I will tell it one last time in a way, even a complete retard like you should be able to understand. **Listen well, I...don't...love...you and I ****_never_**** will! Not only are you annoying, but disgusting too!** Now move aside or I will make you!", Sakura ranted, clenched her fist and pulled her arm back threateningly. The whole class was watching their exchange intently, waiting for Naruto to react. Only Chōji inhaling his chips could be heard, who ate them at a constantly increasing rate.

'Troublesome woman'

'Naruto-kun'

'You truly have changed Sakura. You didn't have to tell him that in such cruel way!' Ino glowered at her rival and former best friend. She wasn't fond of the annoying blonde, but no one deserved such a cruel rejection. She knew from Sasuke's constant rejection of her feelings how much it can hurt and if he broke down she would comfort him afterwards. Sakura crossed a line. However, much to her surprise Naruto fiercely glared back at Sakura with icy blue eyes that send a chill down her spine.

"Hit me and you are going to regret it for the rest of your miserable life. I guarantee that!", he growled menacingly. With his additional sense he could feel her hate towards him in a way a person without it can't comprehend.

A vein popped on her forehead.** 'Who does he think he is, speaking to me like that?! He needs to be tought a lesson! I'm going to put you in your place, shannaro!'** Her eyes were flaring with rage now and she spoke without thinking. "You... You dare talk to me like that! Didn't your parents teach you how to speak to a girl? Haha, oh wait, that's right you don't have any..."

"Sakura... Shut your mouth at once or I will do it!" Sasuke snapped and defended Naruto, much to everyone's surprise, including Naruto himself, who raised an eyebrow at him, feeling his inner turmoil. Sakura's eyes widened and she hurriedly tried to defend herself.

"B-But he... " Before she could elaborate any further Iruka entered with a document in his hand. He felt the tension in the air and was quick to disperse the crowd with the help of his **_Big Head no Jutsu_**.

"From today onward you are official genin of _Konohagakure no Sato_ and regarded as legal adults. You have a hard journey lying ahead of you, but you don't have to walk the path alone. We believe in teamwork and as it is tradition in our village we will form three-man teams, led by a jōnin sensei..."

Everybody was now eying the others. Shikamaru already had a strong suspicion about how his team will be composed of. 'Sigh. What a drag. This is going to be troublesome.'

'Hn, I don't need others standing in my way. I have a goal I must accomplish.', suddenly, a gruesome image entered Sasuke's mind, making him pale. Sakura clinging onto his left arm and Ino on his right shouting _Sasuke-kun_ into his ears. 'No!'

'Kami-sama. Please let me be on Sasuke-kun's team.'

'Naruto-kun, Naruto-kun, Naruto-kun, Naruto-kun...'

'I don't really care as long as Sakura isn't on my team. After her stunt I honestly don't want to see her face again.'

"...Listen well to his or her teachings, since only a few ninja reach the rank of a jōnin or higher, hence they are very skilled shinobi. Hokage-sama and I arranged the teams. We tried to balance them out based on your skills. I will now announce them. Team 1..."

"...Team 7: Naruto Uzumaki..."

That got him said genin's full attention.

"... Hinata Hyūga..."

She was questioning the world around her. She made a seal under her desk to help her activate her kekkei genkai '**_Byakugan_****!'** The veins near her temples bulged and she analyzed her surroundings 'This i-isn't a d-dream and neither a g-genjutsu! It's r-real!' After she confirmed reality she shut her dōjutsu off and cheered internally 'I'm on Naruto-kun's team!' Her _crush_ on him was still grand and this new Naruto aroused her curiosity.

"... and Sasuke Uchiha..."

Ino was sad and hung her head low. Sakura was completely devastated and on the verge of tears. She knew there was nothing she could do to change the teams. Sasuke exhaled deeply. His hellish vision, only surpassed by the genjutsu his brother casted on him on that fateful night, didn't become reality. To be honest, he was pleased. The new Naruto seemed to be a quiet person and that Hyūga girl too, who for some reason wasn't all over him like the other girls.

'Hmm Hyūga', he pondered. The Uchiha and Hyūga have been rivals for generations, even before the village itself has been founded. However, he was neither interested to continue old feuds nor have they caused him any harm. All his _hate_ was solely focused on his _brother_. He searched for the inconspicuous girl and found her a row behind him to his right.

Sasuke never really paid attention to this girl or other girls for the matter. Nonetheless she's going to be on his team, so he took in her features for the first time. She wore a thick furry hooded-jacket with a fire emblem on each upper sleeve, despite the usually high temperature in Konoha. Furthermore, she had short dark blue hair with chin-length strands framing her face and her blue forehead protector was tied around her neck.

Finally, his eyes rested on her almost featureless white orbs, that had a tint of lavender in them, he observed with his keen eyes, granted by his lineage and... something else. 'The **_Byakugan_**' he mused. According to persistent rumors the **_Sharingan_** evolved out of the **_Byakugan_**. At that he snorted internally. There was simply no way this could be true, but he had to admit that both their dōjutsu shared quite some similarities from the facts he knew.

However, there was one trait the **_Byakugan_** blessed its wielder that he truly _envied_. Sasuke would never openly admit that of course. It doesn't need to be awakened! _Every_ Hyūga could activate it the moment they learn how to mould chakra, whereas he didn't have the slightest idea about how to awaken his **_Sharingan_**! His accursed _brother_ mastered it already at age of _eight_ and he was _twelve_ by now! Day after day he's falling behind and his _brother_ keeps getting stronger! Lately, his progress additionally became stunned and no matter how hard he trained on his own he wasn't getting _significantly_ stronger.

Hinata met Sasuke's piercing analytical gaze for a second and immediately averted her eyes. She could never directly look into other people's eyes for too long. Months ago, Naruto looked at her in a similar manner and she fainted. He obviously wanted to tell her something, but they were all alone and so close and to her shame she fainted. 'W-Why? Why a-am I so w-weak? Why am I a f-failure? Why c-can't I be as s-strong as N-Naruto-k-kun?'

"...Team 8: Sakura Haruno..."

The mentioned kunoichi didn't pay attention anymore. Her world has broken down. She wouldn't be able to spend much time with Sasuke anymore and on top of that he seemed to be upset with her, even threatened _to shut her mouth_.

"... Kiba Inuzuka..."

"Why do I have to be on a team as _her_", he protested loudly, stood up and pointed at Sakura. Her little speech made him lose any respect he held for her, which was only a tiny amount since she always insulted him and told him to take a bathe. Even Ino didn't feel the need to defend her against Kiba.

"... **Silence!** Those team constellations are _final_. The last member of Team 8 is Shino Aburame..."

Shino had similar thoughts as Kiba, but didn't voice them and remained impassive. Sakura hated his bugs, thus him even more, because he let them live inside his body like all the other Aburame and based his techniques on them. She insulted him more than once on several occasions.

"...Team 9 is still in circulation. Team 10: Ino Yamanaka..."

"... Shikamaru Nara..."

"... and Chōji Akimichi..."

Ino rolled her eyes 'Great I got fatso and the lazy bum.' One thing was for certain. If she was already stuck with them she would take command! Shikamaru and Chōji were glad to be on the same team due to their deep friendship, but at the same time didn't look forward to it, because of Ino's bossy attitude.

"Your sensei will arrive in the afternoon. You can take a break now. My last words as your instructor are the following. Keep the Hi no Ishi (Will of Fire) in your hearts and wear your headband with pride. Dismissed."

* * *

Sakura was currently searching for Sasuke. None of her teammates wanted her company and shot her dirty looks, at least she thought Shino did so. That guy was just creepy and Kiba's dog growled at her. Therefore she just went off by herself. Eventually, she found him sitting alone on a bench, eating some rice balls.

Sasuke was enjoying the peace. Normally, a horde of fangirls would surround him during the breaks, professing their undying love for him and offer him self-made meals. He was glad that his academy days were finally over. Naruto went off somewhere by himself, probably to that ramen shop he was always bragging about in the past and Hinata disappeared shortly after he left. He didn't mind though. Why did they have put him in a team anyway? He was the _Rookie of the Year_, the best of the best, and doesn't need a team's support. On the contrary, others would just hinder him. Sasuke took a bite out of his rice ball as his keen senses suddenly registered someone approaching him.

"S-Sasuke-kun? P-Please c-can we talk f-for a m-moment."

Gulping down he turned his head to look at her and said in an annoyed tone "What do you want? Make it quick." He didn't want to deal with her right now.

"I don't know what I did to upset you this much, but I want to apologize to you, Sasuke-kun I...", she began until he cut her off with a dark look.

"It is not me you should apologize to. **It's Naruto!**"

"S-Sasuke-kun? W-Whats wrong?" She was shocked at his outburst. She never saw him losing his cool like that.

"You are only caring about your own feelings and don't seem to realize how much your comment about him, having no parents, hurt him. But I don't expect a spoiled ignorant girl like you to understand. You don't know the pain of loneliness as he and I do. You call him disgusting and annoying. Let me tell you this. It is you who is disgusting and annoying!"

Tears were streaming down her face and she was trembling, holding her hands in front of her heart. 'I-Is this how Naruto is feeling?... No, Sasuke-kun is right. I don't have the slightest idea how he's feeling. I have to find him!'

"D-Do... y-you k-know... w-where he... i-is?", she managed to stutter out between her sobs.

Having regained his cool he coldly replied "I think you can find him at that ramen shop... Ichiraku's I think. Now, get out of my sight."

Sakura ran to find Naruto and Sasuke resumed to eat.

* * *

"So, the Hyūga heiress and the Uchiha boy are on your team. How do you feel about that?", Teuchi asked their number one customer, after he put his fourth bowl of miso ramen in front of him, who just shrugged in response.

"I would have prefered Shikamaru and Chōji, but I don't really care and neither will I complain to Jiji. However, I can't understand Iruka-sensei's and Jiji's reasoning for putting us together in a team. Iruka-sensei said they tried to balance the teams, though, I fail see how that's the case with my team. The bastard is _Rookie of the Year_, Hinata graduated as the second best kunoichi, right after _Sakura_ and they know that I'm much stronger than the records indicate."

Teuchi noticed the tone in which he spoke that girls name and of course knew that she was his former crush. This girl must have really upset him.

"Hmm maybe they haven't based their decisions on strength and skill alone and there is a hidden meaning behind this constellation.", Ayame mused and scratched her chin in deep thought. Despite just having received a basic education she was a very intelligent girl with a sharp mind. Naruto enjoyed discussing with her.

"Yea, you are probably right Ayame-neechan.", he agreed and prepared himself to eat the steaming bowl of precious ramen in front of him. He took a good sniff, his mouth began to water and he licked his lips. "Itadaki...", he began but stopped as he suddenly sensed great emotional distress behind him. Turning around Naruto saw a panting and weeping Sakura with puffy red eyes and he frowned at her.

"What do _you_ want?"

"N-Naruto p-p-please forgive m-me for treating you s-so badly. I-I had n-no idea how m-much I h-hurt you.", she said while bending forward in a bow, her tears hitting the ground. Teuchi and Ayame were watching their exchange intently.

"Why the sudden change of mind?"

"I-I spoke with S-Sasuke-kun a-and..."

"So you are apologizing because he of him?!"

**"No! I mean what I say!"**, she got up and stood straight, looking determined into his eyes. 'She's honest! I can feel it.' The silence that followed was broken by a _loud_ growling noise from Sakura's stomach, who turned red in embarrassment and tried to hide her face behind her hands. She was dieting frequently and skipped today's breakfast without her mother knowing.

Suddenly, an appetizing smell entered her nose. She took her hands down and saw Naruto offering her his bowl of ramen. He saw her questioning look, smiled warmly and said "You are obviously very hungry. I invite you. Don't worry, I already ate three bowls and can wait for the next one a while longer. I accept your apology."

Teuchi and Ayame smiled at this scene. Sakura returned Naruto's smile and wiped away her tears "T-Thank you, Naruto...-kun" She accepted the bowl gratefully, sat down next to him and huffed "Hmpf Don't get the wrong idea. This is no date."

"Alright. No date then. Just eating with a friend."

* * *

Both ate for while, but still kept track of time and to his surprise Sakura actually ate _four_ bowls and told Teuchi she would visit Ichiraku's frequently in the future. They talked about literally anything, learning a lot about the other in the process and Sasuke eventually became the topic. Naruto avoided calling him bastard in her presence, but nonetheless told her that he doesn't hold him in high regards.

"Do I get this right? You gave up your wonderful friendship with Ino, because of this guy?" Ayame asked unbelievingly and shook her head.

"It's not just _any_ guy!", Sakura hurriedly defended herself.

"Well, be that as it may. Haven't you thought that you might have hurt Ino's feelings as well? A guy should be no reason to end a friendship. Who is saying you can't still be friends with her? Don't you miss the happy times you had together?", Ayame countered and gave Sakura something to think about.

Memories were flooding her mind. She remembered the day when she was all alone, crying and so ashamed of her forehead until Ino came, who cheered her up and gave her a red ribbon to draw attention away from her forehead, that she returned to her later on and would take it back when she defeated her. Ino gave her confidence on more than one occasion and stood up for her against those who bullied her. That's why she admired Ino so much. Sakura wants to be just like her. To have the same confidence in herself. No! She wants to surpass her, to _blossom into a beautiful flower_ as Ino had put it back then.

Being able to sense emotions all the time of those in your proximity wasn't easy. Naruto sensed the flood of Sakura's overwhelming emotions and it was beginning to make him feel dizzy. Hopefully he will learn how to control his ability.

"Well... _maybe_ I could spend some time with her again, for the old times' sake. But I won't hand Sasuke-kun over to her without a fight!" she declared confidently, but she hung her head low afterwards "I just wish I could grow stronger. I have no clan to support me, my stamina is far below average and I have no fancy secret family jutsu like Ino."

"Hey...", she heard Naruto say softly and turned to face him, who put his right index finger on her forehead and spoke "That may be the case, but you have something far more valuable than that. You are a very bright girl with a sharp mind. Put it to use and no one will be able to stop you. Furthermore, you can train your body. Better late than never and ask me or your sensei for help. I'm there for you, dattebayo."

She blushed at the contact and his encouraging words. After he took his finger away she nudged him playfully on his shoulder. "N-Naruto-kun. You...You are true friend, you know." In his presence she felt like back then with Ino. **'I was so wrong about you! You are a great person, shannaro.'**

"Hehe Thank you. Let's go or we will miss our team briefing.", he replied while grinning and scratching his neck, also blushing slightly. It felt very good to finally have a friend in his age group.

"Until next time Teuchi, Ayame-chan(-neechan)" Sakura and Naruto exclaimed simultaneously, waved them goodbye and set off to the academy at a moderate pace.

* * *

"So... this is where Naruto lives? With all due respect Hokage-sama. With all the money his parents left behind he could have grown up much better."

"True Kakashi, but I didn't want to spoil him and teach him the value of money and I think it was quite successful. I will personally hand him over his inheritance when he either becomes a jōnin or turns 21. Sadly though, only money, some pictures and _the_ special items are left of their possessions. A shame their compound and all its secrets have been destroyed during the beasts attack.", Hiruzen responded cryptically, because there were no privacy seals in Naruto's apartment and mulled over what was left of Naruto's parents legacy.

'The key to Naruto's seal is protected by the scroll toad Gerotora, who in turn is guarded by Jiraiya. Furthermore, thirty-one of Minato's _and_ Kushina's Hiraishin-Kunai have been found in the forest and ruins.'

People tend to give Minato _all_ the credit. He was a true genius in fūinjutsu, no doubt, far surpassing Hiruzen's and Jiraiya's knowledge, but he was no Uzumaki. He discovered the principle of the jutsu and created most of the seal on his own. However, only with Kushina's help he completed the final steps in such a short amount of time.

'Jiraiya will take him on as his apprentice and teach him all he knows about fūinjutsu when he becomes a chūnin. I hope it will be enough, so Naruto can figure out how it works once I hand him over the Hiraishin-Kunai.'

Minato indeed taught three others the jutsu, his bodyguards Genma, Raido and Takeshi (I made that up, the last one's name is unknown). But it's just a _heavily_ downgraded version and requires all three of them to perform it.

'I urged them to write the **_Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)_** down in the Fūin no Sho (Scroll of Sealing), but they didn't listen to me and thought the only save place to keep this secret was their own mind, just like Tobirama-sensei didn't listen to Hashirama-sensei and refused to write it down in fear it might fall into wrong hands. Besides, both wanted to make it the Hiden (secret family jutsu, that are passed down orally to the next generation) of the Namikaze-Uzumaki family and now our only hope in reviving this technique lies in Naruto.'

The now revealed Kakashi saw one of Naruto's suits lying on his bed and remarked. "Hmm he definitely has an interesting sense of fashion."

"Ha, so do you Kakashi. I'm entrusting him to you now. I have great faith in you, especially since you were _his_ student, but make sure not to neglect the other two. You are the only one who can teach Sasuke how to properly utilize the **_Sharingan_** and if Hiashi or Kurenai hear that you neglect Hinata your life will become a living nightmare."

At the last part Kakashi paled. Hiashi, in contrast to popular belief, loved his daughters more than anything else, but was unable to express his feelings since his wife died and Kurenai, who tutored Hinata at home, already hated him for his... _hobbies_. Hiashi's mastery over the jūken (Gentle Fist) and Kurenai's genjutsu were a frightening force to face.

"Furthermore, Sasuke's mindset is troubling. You have to keep an eye out for him and I fear Naruto has become too confident in his abilities. Don't let the academy records fool you. He's no ordinary genin and has a lot of surprises hidden up his sleeve."

"Sounds troublesome. Well, they first have to pass _my_ test."

Both left the apartment and Kakashi went off to the memorial stone to show Obito, Rin, Minato-sensei and Kushina his respect. His unofficial students will have to wait.


	5. Comrades

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the world government and be under Whitebeard's protection.

**AN: **This chapter is longer than the previous ones, so enjoy. As always, tell me what you think. Especially how you think about the fights. Up till now you haven't seen any of this new Naruto's weaknesses and vulnerable spots, which this chapter will reveal. Sasuke and Hinata also get their fair share of development.

**Anonymous reviews:**

_reishiki:_ Well Ino, Shikamaru and Chōji were out of the question for team seven, because the higher-ups would _never_ forgo this battle-proven formation, except in stories where they act very ooc. I think Kurenai is the best jōnin sensei to mold Sakura into the kunoichi she should have been and not that pitiful excuse of a ninja she became in canon. Sakura is the ideal type for not only med, but _also_ for genjutsu and Kurenai is currently the best genjutsu user in Konoha. Kakashi is probably not _that_ far behind in this area though. The Byakugan is practical for scouting, yes, but the jūken all the more for an all out frontline team, which team seven is supposed to be. Shino is not suited for a heavy combat team. Kiba... maybe, but I didn't want an all-dude team. Don't worry, no devil fruits for our ninja's.

_Kono-ma Ebisu:_ How Ebisu became a _special_ "jōnin" is beyond me and I really want to see some of the _Hokage candidates_ he trained. Konohamaru won't play any important part in the story, but he will meet Naruto later on.

**Published:** 02.17.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts'**  
**

"Human speech" ; **"Shouting"**

_**Jutsu/Rokushiki technique**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 5 - Comrades**

'Three hours!' Sasuke thought angrily. The only outward sign that expressed his discontent was the slight twitching of his left eyebrow every now and then. Even the patience of an Uchiha has its limit! He could have already started training with his jōnin-sensei. But here he was, wasting precious time, falling further behind his _brother_, sitting still with his hands folded before his chin and his elbows resting on his desk.

All the other jōnin-sensei already picked up their teams ages ago. In his opinion, they didn't look very strong. Was that really the _elite_ of the village? Among them was also a beautiful black-haired woman, whose eyes intrigued him. They were red, just like the _**Sharingan**_, only without the tomoe. Is she distantly related to his clan? Probably not or she would have contacted him by now.

He, the Hyūga girl... Hinata, he faintly remembered and Naruto were the only ones left in the room. Even Iruka left an hour ago. Naruto returned together with Sakura, walking beside her as if nothing had happened between them. On the contrary, both were happily smiling and laughing, confusing the others, especially the rest of team eight.

Naruto didn't seem to care that their jōnin-sensei was late and currently _meditated_ on the ground, something he never thought someone so hyper only a few days ago would do. Hinata didn't seem to care either, who sat in the last row, seemingly happy to watch the blonde sitting still like a stone. 'Does she have a crush on him? It _seems_ so.' He never paid any attention to the inconspicuous girl and assumed she was secretly like all the other of his fangirls. Sasuke was used to every girl in his class chasing after him. 'Does he even realize her infatuation? Wait... why do I think about that anyway? Probably out of boredom.'

His train of thoughts was interrupted by someone opening the door, getting all three pairs of eyes to look at the intruder and to widen slightly. "Team seven?", a tall man, dressed in the standard Konoha shinobi uniform, which seemed to be the only normal part of his attire, asked with what they at least _assumed_ was a bored expression on his face. The lower-half of his face was hidden behind a mask, his gravity-defying spiky hair was silvery-white in color and he wore his forehead protector tilted over his left eye, effectively covering it.

'Did he lose his left eye in battle?' Naruto and Sasuke thought simultaneously. 'S-So this i-is my s-sensei.', Hinata thought in concern and a tiny amount of fear, which she tried to hide. He looked strict! She wished Kurenai, who picked up team eight, and gave her a sad and apologizing glance before she left, would have been her sensei. Kurenai was kind, _very_ patient with her and never _punished_ her. The total opposite of her father. She feared this man will be like her father. At the thought of her father she began to tremble and shrink into her coat, which didn't go unnoticed by the keen eye of Kakashi. (Naruto is too far away from her to feel her fear.)

After all three nodded he continued "My first impression of you three is... you don't look like much, especially the one in the ridiculous suit." to which Naruto frowned and Sasuke scowled. "_Sensei_. Why are you _three_ hours late?!", Sasuke asked in a slightly raised voice, due to his accumulated rage. Kakashi just scratched the back of his neck and gave him his eye-smile. "Haha. Well, I umm... I got lost on the road of life." was is lame excuse, that made Sasuke grit his teeth in anger and the other two sweat drop. 'Is he really a jōnin?' they thought in unison.

"Enough of this chit-chat! Follow me, so we can introduce ourselves properly in a more comfortable environment.", he ordered and everyone followed his lead, but Hinata kept her distance and looked downwards.

* * *

Everyone arrived on the roof. Kakashi leaned lazily against the railing, whereas his would-be students sat in front of him on a staircase, a good distance away. Naruto, his arms crossed, legs folded and eyes closed sat in the middle, flanked by a nervous and slightly blushing Hinata to his right and an impassive looking, but angry on the inside, Sasuke to his left.

Kakashi clasped his hands together to get their attention and began to speak. "Alright, let's introduce ourselves. Give us your name, likes, dislikes, hobbies and a dream for the future. Any volunteers?"

Hinata looked down and tapped her index fingers together, Sasuke grunted, questioning the meaning of this pointless waste of time. Naruto sighed and opened his eyes. "I will start then...", Naruto began in a calm voice and everyone looked expectantly at him, especially Hinata, who wanted to get this new Naruto to know.

"My name is _Naruto Uzumaki_, as my former classmates already know and you too from our records, sensei...", he remarked dryly, receiving a nod and grunt of acknowledgement from Sasuke and a frown from Kakashi. "...Ninja Registration Number 012607..." Kakashi's frown only deepened at that.

Afterwards, Naruto smiled and continued excitedly "... My likes are _ramen_, especially miso ramen and free ramen, nature, my outfit, training and my precious people..." Kakashi's frown lessened.

Naruto's smile vanished, his eyes grew cold and a little wet "... My dislikes, _no_, what I _hate_ are three things. First, is not to know _why_ the villagers hate me and treat me as if I'm less worth than the dirt under their feet and never call me by my name. Second, not to know _who_ my parents were and third..." his voice grew more raspy with each syllable. He clutched his arms tightly with his hands and brought them closer to his torso, as if he was hugging himself "... is to never be able to _feel_ the love in a mother's hug or hear a father tell you that he's proud of you... sniff."

He was close to crying, shivered slightly and breathed heavily, but with his willpower he suppressed the tears. He had to be strong! Naruto didn't knew why he exposed his deepest hidden feelings to them. Maybe his subconsciousness was looking for a way to expel the accumulated grief.

'N-Naruto-kun! I-I'm h-here for y-you, d-don't cry!', the shocked and concerned Hinata wanted to desperately shout that out and comfort him, but didn't find the confidence to do so. It was like in the past, when she silently observed a crying Naruto, sitting all alone on a swing in the park, from afar, hiding behind a tree and not finding the strength to approach him.

'W-Why? He n-needs m-me more than e-ever! W-Why can't I find the s-strength?', she thought and her mind's eye projected her father towering over her, looking at her with cold uncaring eyes, telling her in a voice devote of any warmth or love that she's a failure, weak in mind and body, not worthy of the surname Hyūga. He always had such high expectations. Nothing she ever did was good enough. The fact that a _civilian_ girl ranked first kunoichi and she only second in her class only added to his apparent shame of her. A Hyūga, especially the heiress, does never rank second in anything. Not to mention that she always lost against Hanabi, her little sister and the reach of her _**Byakugan**_ was laughed at among her peers.

'We are even more alike than I thought!', Sasuke mused while looking wide-eyed at Naruto. He remembered, with only slightly watering eyes, the happy times he had with his parents. His mother, giving him a heartwarming hug and kiss on the cheek and his father, telling him that he was proud of him after he learned the **_Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Style: Grand Fireball Technique)_** and proved to be a _true_ Uchiha, worthy to be a member of the clan, a praise he had desperately longed for, because he always vanished in his _brothers_ shadow, the genius of the Uchiha clan.

All that, forever taken away from him by his accursed _brother_, whom he admired and loved so much. His brother even showed him his unforgivable act countless of times in a genjutsu until he passed out. Sasuke clutched his pants tightly and clenched his teeth. 'Mother... Father... I'm going to avenge you! And also every other Uchiha he slaughtered that day! When I find him, it won't be quick and quiet like it was with you, it will be loud and nasty. I'm going to make his last moments so painful that the hell I'm going to send him into will feel like heaven to him! I will bathe in his blood! I hope you will see it from wherever you are. It will be _wonderful_.'

"Naruto... if you need a short break then..." Kakashi asked softly, but was cut off by the blonde, who managed to compose himself and in his own grief hadn't registered Hinata's and Sasuke's inner turmoil with his additional sense. "No... it's ok again! I'm fine sensei.", he replied, took a deep breath and shifted back into his previous posture, to which Kakashi frowned and thought 'Nothing is _ok_! That's highly alarming! I never imagined his mental scars would run so deep! The beast could use that to influence him. Does Hokage-sama know this?' His mask hid his concern.

Naruto continued happily as if nothing had happened "... My hobbies are playing pranks, comparing ramen, gardening, ..." Sasuke cocked an eyebrow 'Gardening?' "... discussing with Ayame-neechan and... and... I guess training..."

"... My dream for the future is to _earn_ everyone's respect, so the people are going to name me their Hokage, dattebayo.", he said with determination in his eyes.

Kakashi mulled everything he saw over. 'Hmm At first he was serious, calm and distant, then childish excited and afterwards his defense fell and he almost broke down. Behind that tough act, which I somehow believe he can actually back up, hides a fragile and hurt child, longing _desperately _for love, recognition and most importantly _answers_. He's emotionally unstable! How will he react when he learns that his own father sealed the beast inside him and is the cause of his grief? I'm definitely not looking forward to it. On that day, he will need his precious people more than ever. I hope when the time comes he will see me as such... provided they pass my test. At least Naruto has a goal that keeps him going.'

"A noble goal you have, Naruto. Now, who wants next?" Receiving no reaction out of the remaining two he pointed at Sasuke. "You, broody! It's your turn."

Sasuke suppressed a snarl that threatened to leave his throat and spoke calmly "My name is _Sasuke Uchiha_. There are a lots of things I dislike, especially late sensei's..." he _tried_ to intimidate Kakashi with a dirty look, that a ninja of his calibre only deemed as cute "...and I don't really like anything in particular. No hobbies. My dream, no, my _ambitions_ are to resurrect my clan..." his expression suddenly darkened and his eyes gained an evil gleam, that made Hinata very nervous, because that look was even more frightening than that of her cousin and it put Naruto on edge from what he sensed "...and to kill a certain man."

'He's unstable too, just as Hokage-sama suspected.'

"Ok and lastly the girl." he said and pointed at Hinata.

"Eeep" She looked around and noticed all attention was now on her. She immediately looked down, blushed and began her introduction in a voice barely above a whisper, stuttering out. "M-M-My n-name is H-Hinata Hyūga."

'This is the clan my ancestors feared so much?', Sasuke scoffed. This was the first time he actually heard her speak... and he was not impressed.

'Why is she so afraid?' Naruto thought in surprise. The fear he sensed was overwhelming. As if she expected someone to strike her any moment.

"... My likes... My likes... are Na-Nar", her breath was getting heavier.

"_Easy_ Hinata. If you don't feel comfortable telling us the rest I won't force you." Kakashi immediately tried to calm the panicking girl in a soft and caring voice, before she would eventually hyperventilate. He was at a loss for words. _Hinata Hyūga lacks self-confidence_, how the records put it, was the understatement of the century. Kakashi fought alongside Hiashi and knew he was a good and reliable man, who would die for his comrades and loved his daughters. Just what was going on behind the high walls of the Hyūga compound? He saw imprisoned and tortured people display similar behaviour.

Naruto put his hand on her soft trembling one and gave it a reassuring squeeze to calm her. "Sensei is right. You can tell us another time, dattebayo." It seemed to work and she blushed heavily at the contact. 'N-Naruto-kun is holding m-my h-hand! His hand is so big,... s-strong... and makes me feel s-safe.'

He felt her calm down considerably and aside from embarrassment also... something else. If it was love, that he had assumed she felt for him months ago, he wasn't sure, since he never received such a feeling from others in his proximity. However, he believed it resembled the feeling a child gives his older sibling in many ways.

'All three are _mental wrecks_! Not that I'm much different though. I just learned to cope with it in my own way as time went by. At heart, despite his attitude, Naruto seems to be every bit as compassionate as Kushina was. She had such a pure heart, much too good for this world, easy to hurt. And that's what I fear. Giving into your emotions was the downfall of so many ninja. In addition, the beast might use that to its advantage. Sasuke... he could become a lunatic on a killing spree, if that gleam in his eyes was any indication. Hinata... I will definitely have to work on her the most and maybe talk to Hiashi, but first I need to gain her trust and that comes only with time.'

"Ahem, _sensei_. We still don't know _your_ name." Sasuke threw in and Naruto let go of Hinata's hand.

"Oh. Hehe, guess it's my turn then. My name is Kakashi Hatake. I don't feel like telling you my likes and dislikes. Dreams for the future hmm never really thought about that and I have a lot of hobbies."

'But, all he told us was his name.' Naruto wanted to facepalm himself. Of course, this was a test to see how much information he would reveal... and he failed miserably.

Kakashi clasped his hands together. "Now, tomorrow you will begin your duty and we will do a little survival training excercise you are going to love hehe."

Sasuke was loosing his cool. "Grrr. Whats so funny? When are you going to train me! Are you saying that I wasted more than three hours of my life, which I could have spent training, only to hear that we will meet tomorrow again?! Why don't we train _now_ that you are here! You are a teacher, so _teach_!"

'I didn't knew you could get so emotional Sasuke.', Naruto remarked internally and Hinata was a bit taken aback by Sasuke's outburst.

"Hehe. Eager aren't we? That's the spirit! But hold in your excitement until you hear this. Listen well, you three. Out of the twenty-seven who graduated only nine will become genin. Consequently, this exam has failure rate of sixty-six percent. Those who fail will be sent back to the _academy_."

Everyone's eyes widened at that. "But what was the graduation exam for?" Naruto tried to argue.

"To sort out the hopeless." was the blunt answer Kakashi gave and continued "You must show me what you are made of. Bring all the shinobi tools you need. Oh, before I forget... I advice to skip breakfast or you will throw up."

'I-If I f-fail I will b-be separated from N-Naruto-kun and f-father is g-going to...', she felt Naruto's strong hand enveloping hers again, who offered her a warm smile, that made her blush madly, but luckily she didn't faint. 'N-Naruto-kun'

'I must prepare well... but I'm sure I can take this guy on. I could have easily beaten Mizuki even if he had used chakra. How much stronger than Mizuki can this man be anyway?'

'I can't afford to lose! I must avenge my clan! Spending another year at this accursed academy, surrounded by fangirls, would throw me too far behind! You want to see what I'm made of, eh? I will show you! When I beat you they are going to make _me_ jōnin and send _you_ back to the academy.', he grinned wickedly at the thought.

Suddenly, Kakashi approached all three of them, pulled out three documents and handed those over to each of them. Hinata took it from the older ninja, mainly because Naruto still held her hand, albeit still hesitantly "All details are listed there and don't be late, ja ne.", he exclaimed with an eye-smile, waved goodbye and vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving the youths to their own devices.

* * *

On the same evening Hiruzen had to calm a royally pissed Kurenai and angry Hiashi, who stomped into _his _office. Hiashi was successful in maintaining a stoic façade, but failed to suppress his voice at times. Kurenai leaned with both hands on _his_ desk and brought her face closer to his, making his hidden bodyguards twitch... they have some nerve!

He was getting angrier with every passing second since this discussion started fifteen minutes ago. They seemed to forget who was sitting in front of them! However, he kept a calm face for only two reasons. Kurenai was just overly protective of Hinata and back then he failed to negotiate another solution for the _Hyūga incident_. This made him partially responsible for Hiashi's grief, who would have died ages ago if it not for his brother's sacrifice.

"Hokage-sama! I urge you to give Hinata into my care while there is still time! I tutored her for years and know that a _man_ like Kakashi, who pursues certain _hobbies,_ cannot possibly be a good influence on her. Hell, he failed all genin teams assigned to him. Failing would break her!", she argued and stared intently at him.

"Hokage-sama! I cannot approve of an _Uchiha_ as my daughter's teammate...", Hiashi spat that clan's name as if it was poisonous, standing right next to Kurenai. "Not to mention that _thing _would corrupt her and...", a monstrous wall of killing intent, that would have killed most chūnin, hit both of them all of a sudden, making them stagger backwards and look at the man in front of them in tremendous fear. The kind old man was completely gone, replaced by the _Shinobi no Kami _and the room grew deadly silent. He fixed Kurenai with a deadly glare.

"I'm not going to let a freshly promoted and still wet behind the ears jōnin question _my_ decisions. Kakashi is an honorable man! I have utmost faith in him and so should you! Not talk bad about him behind his back! You obviously would have passed her, no matter her performance. Due to your behaviour I feel myself confirmed in my decision to let Kakashi take care of her and I question your leadership qualities.", after that lecture Kurenai clenched her fists, bit her lip hard enough to draw blood and fixed the ground, she failed to convince him.

His gaze met Hiashi's, who tried to hold the stare with a with a great deal of effort and willpower, his pride wouldn't let him look away. "When are you or the elders of your clan going to get over that grudge?! He and his rogue brother are the _last_ members of the Uchiha clan! Instead of looking backwards you should look forward and be glad that your daughter has the opportunity to finally turn over a new leaf in the strained relationship between the Hyūga and Uchiha. And I will say it only this once..."

The killing intent directed now solely towards him made Hiashi struggle not to give into his fear and run. "If you dare call _Naruto_ like that in my presence again, clan head or not... _I'm going to kill you_." Hiashi saw Hiruzen kill him in his mind's eye and he fell on his butt, trembling. He breathed heavily and for the first time in his life he was stuttering. "I... u-u-understand H-Hokage-sama."

He now belonged to the small group of individuals who have experienced _Shinobi no Kami__'s_ true power and lived to tell about it... he never wants to face that ever again! Kurenai was utterly speechless at that display of power. Hiashi was the head of the Hyūga clan, yet nothing but a child in this man's presence. She never thought that just a look of this inconspicuous old man held such power!

Hiruzen took a deep breath, calmed down visibly and regained his cool. Seriously, he was too old for this shit. 'Please Naruto, grow stronger, so I can finally leave this office.'

"Your point has been taken note of, but my decision is final. Do you have anything else to say?" They just wordlessly shook their heads, Hiashi got up, his pride hurt, and both left quietly at a high pace.

* * *

Naruto, Sasuke and Hinata arrived at the training ground simultaneously and _early_ in the morning, the sun wasn't even up yet. They were in a clearing, surrounded by a thick forest and a river split the landscape in two. They could see a stone monument on a plateau and three logs lined up, obviously on purpose.

Sasuke and Hinata were tired, hungry and had half-lidded eyes. Naruto on the other hand was fully awake, ready to meet any challenge. At this time in the morning he normally did his usual _morning __jog _and he would never skip breakfast, having learned from the scroll that you need to always drink, eat and sleep plenty or you will fail at every task.

Once they have greeted each other they waited in silence. Sasuke was fuming. The raven-haired boy laid the backpack he had brought with him on the ground and leaned against a log, a deep scowl on his face. That teacher was late again! Naruto wanted to save his energy and began some light warm-up exercises. Hinata rested on the grass. Her father seemed unusually quite this morning, as if something was on his mind and ignored her all the time.

Unbeknownst to them, even to Naruto's highly developed senses, Kakashi was secretly watching them. 'Hmm Hinata seems not as unsure of herself as I thought, maybe because she's tired right now and doesn't register the world around her properly. Sasuke looks like he's ready to kill me and Naruto is a bundle of energy. So he didn't listen to my _advice_. That will make it a bit more difficult.'

After what seemed like an eternity he finally decided to end their misery and appeared before them in a cloud of smoke and waved lazily. "Morning!"

Sasuke snarled, "Your late again! What excuse do you have this time!"

"Haha. Well, you know, a black cat kept crossing my path, trying to make me walk under a ladder, so I had to take a very long tour around the village in order to finally lose it. Oh and there was this old lady I just couldn't refuse to help out since I'm a nice guy and carried her groceries.", he answered Sasuke sheepishly.

'Does he really think we would believe that?!', they thought after they fell over.

"Anyway." He pulled out an alarm clock and two bells. The former he set on top of one of the logs. "I have set the clock for noon. You see those two bells here." and let the the latter ring for all to hear and tied them around his waist. "The one who can't grab a bell before your time runs out will be tied to one of the logs, has to watch how me and the other two eat lunch..."

His explanation was interrupted by Sasuke's and Hinata's growling stomachs "...and will be send back to the _academy_. Here comes the trick! If none of you grabs a bell in time you _all_ fail and go back. Nah doesn't that sound like it will be fun! And that's not even the best part! You can use all means necessary, meaning kunai and shuriken are _allowed._"

'W-What, we c-could h-hurt him and he c-could hurt u-us! I-Is he c-crazy?', Hinata thought in concern. Besides, she hadn't brought any kunai or shuriken with her. _A real Hyūga doesn't need such cheap tools. Our own chakra is all we need_, her father always told her. There was some truth behind that statement, because the jūken indeed provides mid-range attacks and a chakra based defense against literally anything, but those techniques are far too advanced and she doesn't know them yet, only their general principles. She was still a novice.

'That's what I wanted to hear! I will definitely get a bell and burn you into a crisp.', Sasuke already imagined the delight smell of the burned flesh entering his nose. No one messes with _Sasuke Uchiha_.

Naruto lulled the facts over 'Not good. He has far more experience in using weapons than me. I will have to take him out as fast as I can and use the element of surprise. I will attack him with all I have got and leave him no time to react.'

"I expect you to come at me with the intend to kill." At this Sasuke smiled maliciously, Hinata looked unsure and Naruto focused. "Prepare yourselves... **Begin!**"

Hinata and Sasuke wanted to hide in the vegetation, but stopped once they heard Naruto shout "**_Soru (Shave)!_**" Kakashi's lone eye widened, there was no time for a substitution and his instincts, honed by years of experience and his time in the ANBU took over. Naruto moved at extreme speed for a genin and aimed his right index finger at his windpipe. "**_Shigan (Finger Pistol)!_**" The last moment Kakashi turned his body to the right while simultaneously taking a large step back, avoiding the attack. He grabbed the wrist of the boy's outstretched arm tightly in mid-flight, with his left hand and slammed his chakra enforced right elbow into Naruto's lower-right ribs. It was like being hit with a sledge-hammer and he cried out in immense pain.

Kakashi let go of Naruto, who landed on his feet and clutched his hurting side with his left hand, and made sure to build some distance between them. The boy's face was a grimace of agony and his eyes were tightly shut. However, to his credit, he remained on his feet and just doubled over a bit. Luckily, his ribs weren't broken. They would be if Kakashi would have applied only slightly more chakra.

"Naruto-kun!", Hinata exclaimed in shock and concern at seeing him obvious in pain. She was speechless. Her eyes were naturally so far developed that she saw how both moved in all detail. Naruto moved faster than her cousin!

'How did the dope move so fast! I could barely see him moving at all!', Sasuke was beginning to sweat at that display of skill. Both _outclassed_ him in speed! While his eyes were able to follow their bodies he missed the details and Naruto's limbs became blurs.

'That's it! I will let them fight against each other and let Naruto weaken him. Furthermore, I can try to sneak up on him from behind, when he struggles against Naruto. This way, I will be able to get a bell much easier! Even better! If I catch both bells at once I'm going to exchange the other one for Naruto teaching me that speed trick. The Hyūga girl can't make me stronger, I don't need her.' Sasuke ran into the bushes to wait for the right moment to strike.

"Not bad Naruto. You are quick on your feet. I will give you that. The question is, was that the extend of your speed? Hmm"

Kakashi's mind began to process all the intel, that he gathered from that short encounter at lightning fast speed. 'He kicked off the ground multiple times with each step in order to use the in this way generated force to augment his speed. I doubt I could do the same without the necessary training or else I would seriously damage my leg-muscles, because they are not used to the constant strain of the way he moved.'

'That thrust attack, which he performed with his finger, was also quite interesting. It has a lot in common with my **_Raikiri (Lightning Blade)_**. Focus as much force as you can into a single point, in this case physical force into your finger and take a run-up in order to for one thing increase the power and piercing ability and for another thing to strike the enemy before he can blink. As far as I can tell from what I have observed it also shares the same weakness. It's getting more difficult to cancel the technique or change its direction the faster you become. Though I suspect it can also be used from close range without a run-up. Who knows what else he can do with it? I don't know its limits. I need to be careful.

You were right Hokage-sama. He's full of surprises. Just where did he learn that anyway? I have never seen something like that before. Sadly, without my **_Sharingan_** I can't afford to take him lightly and read my book. What else do you have at your disposal, Naruto? And what exactly are you planing, Sasuke?'

The blonde, of course, had pulled the raw force of his **_Shigan (Finger Pistol)_** and intended to make Kakashi cough violently, so he could easily snatch a bell. Like Kakashi, Naruto also tried to gauge the situation. 'OW! OW! OW! Shit! I revealed the limit of my speed to him and he can keep up. If he's even faster than that and his strikes are always that strong my **_Kami-e (Paper Art)_** and _**Tekkai (Iron Mass)**_ will be useless. I still can't perform **_Geppō _**_**(Moonwalk)**_ and **_Rankyaku (Storm Leg)_** accordingly, but the gust of wind I _can_ create might throw him off guard. Also, I'm at a disadvantage in the opening. I must restrict his movements.'

"Whats wrong, Naruto-kun? Do you need a break? Fine by me, feel free to take one, but remember your time is running out."

The pain already began to subside. Knowing Kakashi was right and he wasted precious time Naruto was on the offense again. He lunged at Kakashi and they exchanged a flurry of blows. Naruto's attacks were relentless and no move was wasted, but now that Kakashi knew his level of skill he adapted and matched him evenly for about a minute. Would Kakashi fight the boy seriously, he could have overwhelmed Naruto with his superior speed and strength by now. However, he had to give his would-be students at least a chance to win and limited himself to the strongest member of the group, so they would eventually realize that they can only get a bell by working together.

Kakashi kept defending himself with some difficulty and noticed that the boy was trying to take the battle into the woods. 'Trying to change the battleground to your advantage...' Naruto jumped and aimed a kick at his head. He caught the boy's leg, who immediately tried to retaliate with another one in midair, but before he could Kakashi spun and threw him into the woods '...Alright I will play along. I want to see what Sasuke is going to do. Up till now this was a very decent warm-up.'

Hinata watched the entire exchange rooted on her spot. 'W-What c-can I do? I w-would only g-get in Naruto-kun's way. I-I'm too w-weak.' As she saw Kakashi throw him into the woods she shouted in concern **"Naruto-kun!"** and went after them.

* * *

Before Naruto could hit the ground he backflipped, landed on his feet and took in his surroundings. 'Perfect. I might be able to use it here.' The place left only moderate space to move. It was surrounded by tall trees and bushes, forming an almost perfect circle and the tree crowns let only little light through. Kakashi arrived shortly afterwards, approaching the blonde until he stood a few meters in front him and asked "I would say round one was a tie. Ready for round two?" to which Naruto grinned and replied "This time you won't know what hit you, dattebayo!"

Wholly unexpectedly Naruto jumped right at a tree to his right and turned in midair, so his feet faced it. 'Huh? What is he planning?', Kakashi thought in curiosity and put his guard up. Naruto landed on the surface and propelled himself at another tree, then another and another, using them as stepping-stones, every time gaining more speed and leaving small, but noticeable dents in the wood, sending splinters and the sound of cracking wood through the air. Naruto used his underdeveloped **_Geppō_****_ (Moonwalk)_**, that provides force and **_Soru (Shave)_** at the same time to reinforce it in order to reach a level of speed he never experienced before, performing a vastly inferior version of **_Kamisori (Razor)_**.

'I-Impossible!' Sasuke pondered, hiding in a bush, disbelief written all over his face. Before, he could at least at least track Naruto, when he used his speed trick, but now Naruto _vanished_ from his sight. He closed his eyes and shook his head violently 'I must stop thinking such nonsense! He doesn't disappear. He just moves very fast. I must concentrate.' His eyes shot open and he focused on the trees, seeing the dents getting more and more pronounced. 'Focus!... There!' For a moment Sasuke saw Naruto's foot and his eyes began to itch.

'Fast! This is getting dangerous, even for me.' Kakashi thought as he observed the blonde flying about a meter above him with gradually increasing difficulty, subconsciously moving his right hand closer to his face to remove his headband, but stopped. 'Wait! Am I really that out of shape?' The speed in which the blonde moved right now is nothing short of amazing for a genin. However, he fought _much_ faster opponents in the past. Did he became too lazy? Maybe he should accept Gai's challenges every now and then like in the old times, instead of tricking him into some lame competition like rock-paper-scissors. Kakashi closed his eye, stretched his senses and prepared himself. 'I must time it perfectly.'

Naruto reached his limit. The pain in his legs became unbearable. 'It's time', he thought. He now had built up not only enough force for the technique to have the desired effect, but also enough speed to _definitely_ hit his sensei. His future was at stake and he had to take such extreme measures, even if that meant to injure himself! Finally, he changed the arc and propelled himself to the highest tree and landed on its highest spot, right below the tree crown. He was about six meters above the ground behind his sensei and jumped at him with all his might. The force of this last jump was enough to separate the crown from the trunk! Time slowed down for both fighters.

_You must not doubt yourself! Will yourself to become as hard as iron!_ The blonde remembered a phrase from the scroll and put all his training to use. Naruto formed a fist with his right arm and stretched it out, then hardened all his muscles as much as he could with **_Tekkai (Iron Mass)_** to protect himself from the devastating force of the attack.

'He's coming from behind, above me!'

_**"Tekkai Sai (Iron Mass: Smash)!"**_

BAM!

Shocked blue eyes met a lone black one in slow motion. He missed! The ground cracked open, dust blew up and a crater, three meters in diameter, formed. Kakashi dodged the very last second and brought some distance between them. 'If that would have hit me...' After the dust began to clear up he saw a trembling Naruto, holding his right bloody fist with his left hand. His **_Tekkai (Iron Mass)_** protected him well, but a good part of the incredible force was still flowing through his body.

That last attack took an enormous toll on his body and he breathed heavily. How was he supposed to win in such a state? 'I can't go back to the academy!' You can take the graduation exam _only_ three times... and he already used the additional two exams up! If he failed here, he can't become a ninja anymore! His eyes watered and a sob escaped his throat.

'N-Naruto-kun' Hinata watched everything unfold from afar, her _**Byakugan**_ active. She couldn't help herself and cried as he did.

Memories were flooding Naruto's mind.

'All my training...

all the scraps and bruises...

all my studies...

all the tears I shed from the pain...

all the nights at the hospital...

for naught...' His tears were now flowing freely down his face, he shut his eyes tightly and clenched his fist.

**"NO!"**, he cried out a desperate heart wrenching battle cry and lunged at Kakashi like a cornered animal. He put everything he had into his previous attack and was exhausted, thus the speed and strength of his strikes have lessened considerably. Furthermore, his attacks resembled more wild slashes, gone was the previous grace of his movements, which made him a worthy opponent. Kakashi now had no problem at all to block and dodge his assault.

It pained him of course to see his sensei's son suffering like that, but as he was now he wouldn't survive for long in the ninja world. 'He's very fast, strong and skilled, but too cocky in his abilities and loses his cool if cornered. He thought he could end this battle quickly on his own and took me lightly, without knowing the extend of my power. He used the environment to his advantage, but in his arrogance, he put everything in one attack without a contingency plan, even injured himself. This mindset would get him killed quickly.'

**_"__Jūgon_ (Stern Beast)!"** Naruto swung his aching bloody right fist at him with all the power he could muster in his weakened state at the speed of a **_Shigan (Finger Pistol)_**, which Kakashi caught in his left hand with a grunt. In the corner of his eye he saw a kunai sliding into Naruto's uninjured left hand. The boy had concealed it in his sleeve and aimed it now for his abdomen. _(Kakashi wears an armored chūnin vest. His current Shigan alone can't pierce through it. That's why he uses a kunai.)_

Kakashi retaliated by grabbing his left wrist, with his free hand in an iron grip that made the blonde let go of the kunai, resulting in a struggle of power between the two. Both made eye contact and Kakashi saw Naruto's teary orbs flash between blue and red. 'Just as I anticipated. The beast uses his grief and rage to force its influence upon him, clouding his judgement. He's not in a right state of mind right now.'

'Now or never!' Sasuke thought while facing his teacher's back and sprinted towards Kakashi at full speed to snatch a bell. Naruto couldn't possibly wear down his teacher any further and that power struggle gave him a golden opportunity.

'Seems like you finally decided to join the fray, about time.' Kakashi had of course not forgotten about the other two. "Sneaking up from behind to take the bells for yourself? How devious.", he declared loudly, pulled Naruto to him, causing the blonde to lose his balance, kneed him _extremely_ hard in the face and let go of him. The force of Kakashi's attack was so grand that it send Naruto flying a good distance and Hinata immediately chased after him.

'Almost!' Sasuke was so close. "You keep complaining that I don't teach you anything. Well, here is my first lesson..." He heard his teacher say and already began to close his hand around the bells, but Kakashi performed a seal-less **_Shunshin (Teleportation Jutsu)_**, which he had prepared for during the power struggle, vanishing from his view. The _Rookie of the Year_ grabbed nothing but air and came to halt, his eyes wide in surprise. 'Huh? Where did he go?'

"...In a fight, the table can turn any moment."

'Behind me!' Sasuke panicked, reached for a kunai and turned his head to spot his foe, but it was already too late to escape his impending doom.

**"_Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu Ōgi: Sennen Goroshi_ (Leaf Village Secret Finger Jutsu: One Thousand Years of Death)!"**

A moment in silence passed. Suddenly, Sasuke's pain-filled cry echoed through the air. That _technique_ send him flying through the tree crown, while holding his hurting butt and he fell right into the cold river. If the rage he felt right now would have been expelled as heat all the water would have evaporated in an instant, it exploded like a volcano!

No one ever humiliated him like... that! He leaped out of the water, all red in the face from embarrassment and anger, landed on the shore and shouted from the top of his lungs.

**"I will murder you!"**

Kakashi emerged out of the thick vegetation and held his ears, wondering if Sasuke lost his voice after that outburst "You know, I think you have quite some anger management issues. It's not good for your health.", he remarked lazily.

Sasuke was angry beyond belief, yes, but he was no retard and wouldn't attack without assessing the situation first. From the fight between Naruto and Kakashi he concluded that engaging his teacher in a taijutsu match would be doomed to fail. He would have to rely on shuriken and kunai based mid to long-range attacks and his ninjutsu.

The boy made a series of hand seals, that Kakashi recognized instantly, blew out a small flame, hurriedly took several shuriken out of his pouch and threw them into the slowly dispersing flame, hence the deadly projectiles went up in flames themselves.

**_"Katon: Hōsenka Tsumabeni (Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Shuriken Jutsu)!"_**

'Hmm I didn't expect he would have enough chakra to perform such a jutsu without eating breakfast nor to have such control.' Knowing it wouldn't be a good idea to deflect them with his own kunai Kakashi evaded them, by jumping to his right. Sasuke used the time this diversion granted him and ran towards his backpack, from which he pulled out a folded fūma shuriken (the really big one's) and began to unfold it.

"Do you think a single oversized shuriken will be enough to beat me? It's size represents your ego quite well. Are you trying to compensate for something? Maybe you are nothing but hot air after all? Mister _Rookie of the Year_.", Kakashi taunted.

"Hn We will see, _cyclops_.", was Sasuke's blatant answer and he prepared himself to attack. He began to spin and threw it with all his might at his opponent's head in order to decapitate Kakashi.

'Too easy. I honestly expected more from you, Sasuke.' Wanting to show off, making Sasuke lose all hope in the process, Kakashi readied himself to catch it. As the fūma shuriken came close his lone sharp eye narrowed at the sight of a second fūma shuriken hidden in the firsts shadow. 'Good move, but still not good enough.' Kakashi changed his initial plan and evaded them, before they could do any harm, by moving to his left. Suddenly, he heard an unexpected sound, putting him on edge. He saw them changing direction and moving towards him again! 'He has wires attached on them. That's really good Sasuke, but you can't move while you control them.'

Kakashi ducked under the deadly projectiles, hurriedly straightened himself and began to sprint towards Sasuke at low chūnin level speed. All the while Sasuke was observing Kakashi's and the fūma shuriken blades relative position with his keen eyes. 'Now!' He pulled on the strings and triggered the hidden mechanism.

_CLANG_

'What the?' Kakashi's single eye widened in surprise and he turned his head to the source of the worrying sound.

_BOOM_

He was greeted by two very sharp blades, detached from the two fūma shuriken and propelled due to the mechanism, flying directly towards him at high velocity! There was no time for a substitution! Jumping was out of the question, because the raven-haired boy could bombard him with those flaming shuriken again, which he can't risk to deflect with his normal kunai. He had to increase his speed towards Sasuke to avoid them. While his sensei was momentarily distracted Sasuke let go of the wires, executed a series of hand seals and inhaled deeply.

_**"******__Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu_ (Fire Style: Grand Fireball Technique)!"

Additionally, a giant fireball approached Kakashi rapidly from the front now, limiting his options. Sasuke used a lot of chakra to make it extra huge for his favourite sensei. 'You wanted to see what I'm made of. This is for you. Now burn!' Kakashi had no choice, while increasing his speed, so the blades would miss him, coming the monstrous fireball dangerously close, he performed a number hand seals at unreal speed and slammed his hands onto the ground. **_"Doton: Doryūheki (Earth Style: Mud Wall)"_** A man-high and chakra enforced wall of earth rose up from the soil, taking the fireball head on, buying him time as well as obscuring him from Sasuke's view.

'What no! Where did that wall came from?', Sasuke thought in shock while panting heavily. That was his trump card and he was nearly out of chakra! He was running out of options! No! He won't give up and go back to the academy, especially not after what that man did to him! Arming himself with a kunai in each hand he went around the steaming wall to face him in a final showdown, but Kakashi wasn't there. 'Where is he?'

**_"Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu (Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu)"_** All of a sudden a hand grabbed his ankle and pulled him into the ground, until only his head was left above the surface. He desperately tried to move the earth, but to no avail. Towering over him was now his sensei. "That was a nice move Sasuke. Making me come at you, distract me with a sound from behind, while preparing an offensive jutsu at the same time. Letting me decide whether I run faster towards certain death to avoid the blades or try to evade the projectiles first and face death afterwards."

Kakashi was sweating lightly. Partially due to the heat left in the air from Sasuke's monster of a fireball and mainly because Naruto and Sasuke were a good workout and that earth-wall did cost some chakra. 'Time is almost up. What's Hinata doing by the way?' He eye-smiled, patted Sasuke's head and went to look for her. He already had a strong suspicion where to find her. Behind him he could hear Sasuke rant. "Grrr How dare you mock me, an Uchiha, like that! **Hey!** Come back here! I'm not finished with you! I must pass to get stronger or I will fall further behind! I'm an _avenger_!"

* * *

Hinata knelt next to an unconscious Naruto, inspecting his injuries. His right hand looked pretty bad and blood was flowing out of his nose, which she checked and luckily it wasn't broken. She applied some of her medicine, made of special herbs she had collected, on his wounded right hand and face. Out of nowhere a gust of wind made some leaves circle around her...

"Hinata!", she heard a familiar and stern voice shout. Turning around she came face to face with her father! She began to tremble at her father's tone and he looked _extremely_ angry. She didn't do anything wrong. The last time she saw him this angry were the days that followed her mother's death. Since then, he became so cold, harsh an uncaring.

"F-F-Father! W-What a-a-r...", she started to stammer out in great fear because of the look he sent her, but he cut her off by raising his hand.

"Quiet! Spare me your stuttering. It's pathetic! I came here to finally apply the cursed seal onto you myself!"

Her whole body was shivering and tears fell freely. "W-What! W-Why?"

"The elders and I no longer see you fit to be the heiress of our proud clan. You are everything a perfect heiress isn't, but Hanabi is and she will take your place. Since I was part of bringing such a _failure_ like you into this world it's my duty to do this now. I'm doing this with great pleasure and disown you to save my clan from being led into its ruin by _you_ as the clan head.", he answered her question, while looking at her with great disgust.

Those harsh words were hurting her more than any physical wound possibly could. Her heart felt as if a thousand knifes pierced into it! She buried her face into her hands and wailed like she never did before, her heart wrenched cry of misery echoed through the forest.

* * *

Far away, Sasuke, still buried, heard her cry 'What in the world was that!? Was that Hinata?! What in the world is that bastard Kakashi doing to her?!' That scream strongly resembled one he heard once before... his own! On that fateful night when he lost everything he cared for, causing deep buried memories to surface again.

* * *

Her father watched her without even batting an eyelash. There was only one final thing she wanted to know and asked in a raspy voice between her sobs. "D-D-D-o-o-y-y-y-o-u-u l-l-o-ve m-m-m-e?"

"No.", he answered without hesitating. She wanted _die_ right now! Maybe if she committed _seppuku_ he would at least not be that ashamed of her anymore.

"Now! Move away from that _thing_ behind you and come to me, so we can begin with the ritual."

"W-What d-did you c-call Naruto-kun?", she stopped crying, looked up from her hands and frowned.

"Hinata! Move your useless ass here. I don't like to repeat myself! And yes, I called that _nuisance_ behind you a _thing_."

She clenched her fists, gritted her teeth in anger and said without stuttering "Grr. Take... that... back!"

"What was that? I won't let _you_ tell _me_ what to do. Besides, he is no person, just a thing. **Now move!**", he declared and stared her in the eyes.

**"Don't call him a thing or nuisance! His name is Naruto!"**, she stared back at him and to enforce her defiance she activated her **_'Byakugan'_**

'Wait, this is...' she thought in suspicion, formed a hand seal and shouted **"KAI!" **Her _father_ slowly dissolved into thin air, but Naruto was still lying unconscious behind her. With her now active **_Byakugan _**she immediately spotted Kakashi leaning against a tree.

"So you managed to finally break out of my genjustu." The **_Magen:_** **_Narakumi no Jutsu (Demonic Illusion: Death Mirage Jutsu) _**is a low-level genjutsu, that lets the victim experience its worst hidden fears. Hinata fixed him with a fierce glare, her once kind and caring, but now teary face reflected her immense anger now, giving Kakashi a feeling of impending doom. 'I don't like the way she's looking at me. She's quite scary!' He wasn't looking forward to a confrontation with her and would have to be extra cautious.

The jūken is a versatile and utmost deadly style, only usable to those with the **_Byakugan_**, due to the insight into the human chakra circulation system it grants the wielder, putting even the _**Sharingan**_ to shame. It focuses on inflicting the opponent internal injuries by injecting one's own chakra into the adversaries chakra pathway system, resulting often in a painful death, because the chakra pathway system is closely intertwined with the functioning of the organs.

Moreover, it can also be used to close the _tenketsu points_, 361 chakra nodes along the pathway, of the human body in order to paralyze the enemy by taking control of his chakra system or even stop the flow entirely. As if that wasn't already enough one can expel chakra from these nodes and form tiny chakra needles, capable of cutting through chakra-based material like the chakra-strings of a puppeteer. All in all, a master of this style can kill the enemy with only a light tap. Fearsome indeed.

Kakashi held his hands in front of his body in a peaceful gesture and gave her his eye-smile "Now, now, Hinata. Take a _deep_ breath. I'm sure we can solve this peacefully. Don't you think? _No_ need for violence. I'm... sorry, honest." He didn't knew what she saw, but after hearing that little girls scream a pang of guilt hit him.

The response he received was a quick palm strike, aimed upwards for his sternum. _**"Shōtei (Palm Heel Strike)!"**_ He dodged and saw the chakra, which she expelled, crack the wood and grimaced behind his mask. He remembered stories the veterans shared about men losing their most prized possession in the most painful way imaginable, shrieking like a fangirl, during a fight with a pissed off female Hyūga.

He couldn't use any dangerous techniques or sharp projectiles against her and tried to come up with a strategy. It was very difficult under these circumstances. Not only was her jūken deadly in offense and defense, thus close combat was out of the question, because he had no intel about her mastery over it and wouldn't take the risk, but her **_Byakugan_** also posed a difficult obstacle to overcome.

It granted her an _almost_ perfect 360 degree telescopic vision with only one tiny blind spot at the back of her neck, and made it impossible to hide from her in a smoke screen, in the ground or behind the surroundings, due to her x-ray vision.

Furthermore, the agility, strength and speed of a Hyūga's arms shouldn't be taken lightly. They can move them at blinding speed. **_Kage Bunshin (Shadow Clones) _**to quickly overwhelm her were an option, because the **_Byakugan_** can't distinguish them from the user, but it would cost him too much precious chakra, that a skilled shinobi doesn't waste, if there are less exhausting options available.

Kakashi sprinted towards the wide clearing and Hinata followed him closely behind in her rage. 'She's not in the right state of mind right now. Also, she's tired and not nearly as quick on her feet as Naruto or Sasuke, giving me more time to react and prepare. I can exploit that. Time to catch a Hyūga.' They arrived at the clearing. Sasuke, whose throat felt entirely sore from all the fire that passed through it and his screaming, saw them as both ran past the stone wall and Kakashi came to halt before the middle log, looked at the clock and thought 'One minute left.'

* * *

"Urgh. Just what hit me?" Naruto questioned, holding his head with his left hand and shakily got back on his feet. 'Right! He kneed me in the face! I have to get a bell. Where is he!', he thought and walked back to the clearing.

* * *

Kakashi turned and faced the rampaging Hyūga, provoking her by giving her a hand gesture that said _What are you waiting for I'm right here_. Hinata fell for it and lunged at him, preparing another devastating palm strike. Kakashi slipped into a defense stance at threw a punch at her. The girl swerved skillfully under it and hit him square in his solar plexus. **_"___****Shōtei** (Palm Heel Strike)!" Kakashi coughed up blood, dyeing his mask red. Her eyes widened in pure horror and realization dawned on her! 'W-What h-have I... '

Before she could ponder any further her **_Byakugan_** told her something was off. _Kakashi_ exploded in a puff of smoke and revealed that she had hit Sasuke's backpack, which flew away from the sheer force. Her eyes immediately registered Kakashi first twirling a metal chain and then tossing it towards her. On instinct, she turned her entire body rapidly around to face the incoming danger. However, before Hinata could act she was tied up against the log by the thick metal chain, whose end Kakashi held in his right hand and said "Checkmate." in victory.

_Ring_

She struggled heavily against her binding, the sound of the clock above her bombarded her eardrums, even expelled chakra from her _tenketsu points_ in an attempt to loosen it, but to no avail. Hinata looked at Kakashi, who let go of the chain and reached into his pouch. 'W-What i-is he going t-to do?', she mused. Kakashi pulled out an orange book, titled _Icha Icha Paradise_ and started to read it. A book she knew all to well about what was written inside! Kurenai told her to be wary about every man possessing it. She looked at the man in front of her in shock and blushed. Hinata, like every Hyūga, received a highly pious upbringing. Seeing her expression Kakashi thought, 'Oh come on. She's looking at me as if I'm a monster.'

Naruto approached them with his head hanging low. He heard the clock ring and knew it was all over for him. "Naruto, dig Sasuke over there up. I have something to tell you all.", he ordered and pointed at Sasuke's head without looking up from the masterpiece of literature. The blond boy wordlessly complied and did what he was told to. Sasuke didn't found the strength to protest anymore. Like Naruto, he was devastated as well and his throat hurt. He has been humiliated and beaten into the ground... literally.

* * *

All three were now right in front of Kakashi, Hinata was still chained. To her right sat Naruto, resting his back against the other log, hugging his knees and buried his face into his arms. Sasuke sat to her left in a similar fashion, but didn't hug his knees.

Kakashi began to speak. "I want you to listen closely. That includes you too, Naruto." Receiving no response from the boy he addressed him again. "Naruto! Look at me!" Only now the blonde looked up at him. "You all failed the test and I ask you, do you know why?"

"B-Because you a-are a j-jōnin and w-we just...", Hinata reasoned and was promptly cut off.

"No! It's because you failed to see the true purpose of this test... teamwork!", at this he received questioning glances. Naruto didn't see the logic in that and questioned Kakashi "But, if there are only two bells then one of us would have still failed, even _if_ we had used teamwork."

"You all showed exceptional skill. Naruto, your taijutsu was amazing and you showed that you can improvise on the spot and adapt to a new situation quickly. Sasuke, I'm not too arrogant to admit it. Your move threw me completely off guard. If I were still a chūnin, you _might_ have killed me and Hinata...", he stopped and met her gaze.

"...you faced your inner demons and instead of continuing to cower in fear and cry you found the strength to face them and broke the genjutsu. I saw the look in your eyes. Aside from rage and grief, that clouded your judgement at that moment, I also saw a proud, strong and fearless kunoichi..."

Hinata blushed heavily at his praise and looked down 'D-Does he r-really mean that?!' and Sasuke smirked slightly. Naruto remained a sad expression. He has been praised for his skill. And? It doesn't change the fact that he can't be a ninja anymore.

"... Despite that, you all failed miserably. You failed to look underneath the underneath..."

Sasuke found something that he could argue with and maybe still pass. Having partially regained his voice he spoke up "But... I worked together with Naruto and almost caught _both_ bells."

"Oh... you think you did? No! You did exactly the same as all the genin I tested before. You put yourself before the team! Teamwork means that individuals work together in order to reach a common goal much easier. You didn't work together with Naruto, you _used_ him for your own personal gain! Furthermore, you ignored Hinata the whole time, thinking she would be of no use to you and not even considered once to at least ask for her help. Such behaviour can not only get you _killed_, but also your entire team! **Being a ninja is no game!** Do you see that stone over there?..." They followed his finger.

"...Because of such behaviour I and many others have lost their comrades forever. Those whose names are engraved in this monument have fallen in battle and are true heroes. I had to learn my lesson the hard way." he walked up to the stone, touched a certain name 'Obito' and continued "... You must be willing to bring sacrifices and put the team even before your own life."

"Together, you can overcome anything. Individual skill is important, yes, but teamwork so much more. Do you know how the _Densetsu no Sannin (__Legendary Three Ninja_), all strong shinobi in their own right, earned their title?", he asked and glanced at them. They just shook their heads "Not because of their individual abilities, but for their teamwork! If they had fought the legendary _Sanshōuo no Hanzō (Hanzō of the Salamander)_ on their own, they would have died, but they fought together, as a team and were able to fight him to a standstill. They earned his respect, so he let them live and gave them their title."

Kakashi went back to the utterly stunned group. "... Naruto, you think that you are so far ahead of your teammates and tried to fight me on your own in your arrogance. You told us that it's your dream to earn the respect of others trough your skill, but how can you expect that from others if you are not willing to do the same. You didn't acknowledge Sasuke's and Hinata's strengths and consequently never included them in your plans..."

"... and Hinata. You only looked out for Naruto and completely forgot that Sasuke even existed!"

All three fixed the ground in shame. "However... You have impressed me, so I'm willing to give you _one last chance_ after you regain some strength. It will be much harder though and I will fight you at my fullest! Naruto, Sasuke, you can eat lunch, but not Hinata. If you give her lunch you fail! That are the rules.", he declared and marched away.

'I will grant them this last chance. If they fail this time, even after I gave them so many hints, then they truly are a hopeless case.'

* * *

_Growl_

Hinata flushed in embarrassment. She was so hungry and felt very tired. Naruto and Sasuke were eating their lunch with a grim expression on their face.

_Growl_

Her stomach protested louder with each passing minute. It was torture for the two. Naruto couldn't contain himself any longer. "Argh I can't enjoy a meal while someone right next to me is hungry! But we have to eat something."

"Me too, dope, but what can we do. That are the rules he set.", Sasuke argued.

"Well... he isn't here. I can't sense him in the vicinity. Maybe we could..."

Sasuke cut him promptly off and stared at him angrily. "I hope you aren't thinking what I suspect! We won't receive another chance. If he's secretly watching then..."

"But haven't you heard what he said! He will fight us at full strength! I believe he hasn't revealed a good portion of his power to us while we fought him.", Naruto stared back.

Hinata felt sad. Again, she was the reason for someone elses problems. "G-Guys. P-Please I w-will b-be o-ok."

Growl

"That's it! Rules or not. I won't let anybody suffer, if I have the power to end his misery.", the blonde declared with determination.

"Hn you will do it, no matter what I say will you?" One glance at Naruto's eyes told him that his mind was set and the issue wasn't arguable. He sighed in defeat "Fine dope. I agree, I can't take it any longer too. Besides, I hate to admit it, but we will need her help if we want to win." He took a good portion out of his bento into his chopsticks and hesitantly brought it close to Hinata's mouth.

"S-Sasuke?!", she exclaimed in bewilderment and all red in the face. "C-Come on. Hurry up and eat. Who knows how long he will stay away. By the way, you can't use your arms.", he replied with his eyes closed and lightly pink cheeks. If his fangirls would know this they would hunt Hinata like harpies' for sure.

Another pair of chopsticks, holding food between them, appeared in front of her mouth. "Yea. The teme is right. With our combined strength he won't know what hit him. Together, we will win for sure, dattebayo!" Naruto assured her and offered her a beaming smile.

'N-Naruto-kun is f-feeding m-me?!... They b-both think I'm u-useful and n-need me!' Her eyes watered slightly. She always saw herself as a burden to others and never as someone valuable. Eventually, her hunger brought her out of her musings and Hinata gratefully took a bite from Sasuke and after she swallowed from Naruto. Never was food this tasty in her entire life!

_Poof_

Kakashi appeared before them with an intimidating aura surrounding him. **"You fed her and have violated my orders!"**

"Eeep!" Hinata squealed in shock.

"I told you he was watching us **idiot**!" Sasuke scowled at Naruto.

"Do you two have anything to say for yourselves?!" kakashi fixed the two boys in a deadly glare.

Naruto's senses told him that something was off, but in the heat of the moment he didn't pay attention to them. "After you held that speech I truly admired you. But you are nothing but a hypocrite after all! I won't apologize for doing the right thing, dattebayo!", he defiantly glared back.

"Hn Me neither! It was the right thing to do.", Sasuke said with crossed arms and stared back at him.

'T-They a-are standing u-up for m-me! I can't let them suffer because of me!' Hinata mustered every ounce of courage she had in herself and lavender-white orbs met a black eye **"It's all my fault! Punish me instead of them!"**

'H-Hinata!', both boys were stunned at the girls self-sacrifice.

"If that's how you feel about it..." Kakashi's aura vanished and he eye-smiled "...you _pass_!"

"Huh?"

"Hehe Whether you would feed Hinata or not was the actual test. Remember what I said, _look underneath the underneath_. All the others before you did as they were told and let their comrade behind. I'm proud of you! Always remember this, because this is the most valuable lesson I can teach you."

_"In the ninja world, those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash!"_

Sasuke smirked and was inwardly touched by his speech, Naruto felt his eyes getting teary, he admired this man and Hinata cried openly. Kakashi untied Hinata, who had something to say.

"S-Sensei, I... still haven't i-introduced myself f-fully.", she requested.

Naruto offered her a warm smile, Sasuke a grin, that would have let his fangirls faint and Kakashi an eye-smile. All three males listened intently.

"My n-name is Hinata Hyūga.", she said much more confidently than yesterday, though she still played with her index fingers.

"My likes are Nar..." Saying that was still a bit too much for some reason, but she found a way around that and still tell the truth. "...um I mean m-my team, cooking, f-flowers and my little s-sister."

"... My dislikes a-are... umm... s-seafood... my s-stuttering and our families _c-cursed s-s-seal_." Naruto and Sasuke raised an eyebrow 'Cursed seal?' However, they kept their mouths shut, not wanting to ruin her great progress. They could ask what that is later on.

"... My h-hobbies are training, g-gardening and pressing f-flowers." at this Naruto smiled. Gardening was one of his hobbies too.

"... My dream for the f-future is to become a person a-as strong as my f-father and kind as my mother a-and to make my c-cousin and father r-recognize me."

Kakashi was happy that she has grown so much in such a short amount of time. "Was that so bad? Now we can really call us a team. I'm looking forward to teaching you."

Hinata smiled brightly.

"Hn", Sasuke gave a grunt of acknowledgement and nodded.

"We are going to be the best team ever, dattebayo." Naruto said excitedly, feeling that a bit of his younger self resurfacing. He felt great in his teams presence. Recently, more and more people became precious to him, Iruka, Sakura and now his team.

Afterwards, Kakashi told his students that tomorrow they would begin their duties and dismissed Hinata and Naruto and told Sasuke to stay for a moment. Hinata walked home with newfound self-confidence and the feeling of being part of something bigger. Naruto walked home with another lesson burned deep into his mind.

_Respect cannot be given, you must earn it._

_In the ninja world, those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash._

* * *

Kakashi gestured Sasuke to him. Student and sensei stood now in front of the memorial stone and Sasuke addressed Kakashi with respect for the first time "What is it, Kakashi-sensei?"

"I feel it's more beneficial to tell you this right now, before it results in future problems. I have earned myself a title. I'm known as _Sharingan no Kakashi_. That's why I was chosen to be your sensei. To help you awaken and master your **_Sharingan_**."

"Um, come again?" Sasuke was clearly confused. The man before him was no Uchiha!

Kakashi brought his right hand to his face and pulled his headband up, revealing a fully matured **_Sharingan_**, that immediately predicted Sasuke's incoming attack. He grabbed the boy's fist, quickly overwhelmed him with his superior strength and pinned him down. He now sat on top of Sasuke's back, his right foot rested on the boy's head and his left hand restricted Sasuke's left arm, rendering the raven-haired boy helpless.

"Argh Who did you kill? From whom did you stole it!", he accused Kakashi angrily and tried to free himself with all his might.

"I didn't steal that eye. It was given to me."

"Liar! Argh", Kakashi applied a lot of pressure on the boy's left wrist, making him howl in agony.

"Calm down Sasuke! If you do that I will tell you _everything_ about how I obtained that eye."

After a few additional seconds of struggling Sasuke finally gave up and replied "Grrr Fine! I will keep quite, but I want to know the _truth_ or else you are going to regret it!"

Kakashi let go of him and sat down, his action was mimicked by Sasuke, who sat in front of his teacher, who covered his eye again and began to tell his story. "His name was Obito Uchiha..."


	6. Dark Justice Part 1

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the world government and be under Whitebeard's protection. A scene in this chapter is inspired by Dragonball, which belongs to Akira Toriyama.

**AN: **A lot of people question Naruto's little emotional breakdown and his loss of control during his fight with Kakashi, after acting so tough. I will explain the exact reasons, that led to those actions, in detail.

**1. Emotional Breakdown:** Naruto is a twelve-year-old, social isolated and mental scared boy. Sakura's comment about his parents, _only a few hours before_, indeed hurt him strongly. Sakura apologized and he forgave her, but it nonetheless resurfaced the grief he has buried deep within his heart over the years, his emotions simply overwhelmed him. While he had Hiruzen, Teuchi and Ayame they couldn't replace the love only parents can give and neither still his thirst for answers. Teuchi and Ayame aren't allowed to talk about his parents or his jinchūriki status and Hiruzen avoids these topics at all cost. Moreover, they are busy with their respective jobs and consequently can't spend as much time with him as they and he would like.

**2. Loss of control:** Naruto is still an _inexperienced _fighter, who was never cornered before and his future was at stake. He took Kakashi too lightly from the start in his arrogance and has not only exhausted himself, but injured as well and the situation seemed hopeless. Of course, he learned that someone needs to keep his cool in battle, but to actually face such a desperate situation in real combat is an entirely different matter, no amount of training can prepare for that. Furthermore, he threw everything he had at Kakashi and it still wasn't enough. For two and a half years he endured the most agonizing training schedule possible. Naruto couldn't accept that all his hard work was for nothing. People forget that he's still a twelve-year-old boy. Growing up includes making mistakes and also learning from them. He's no Itachi, who according to Hiruzen, a reliable source, was a Hokage candidate at the age of seven. Funny thought. Seven year old Itachi as Hokage.

**Published:** 02.26.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts'

"Human speech" ; **"Shouting"**

_**Jutsu/Rokushiki technique**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 6 - Dark Justice Part 1**

'Wow, that was intense! Even after all this time it never gets boring. Just what would I do without my _Icha Icha Paradise_? Please release the sequel soon, Jiraiya-sama.', Kakashi thought once he finished reading the last line, closed his book and put it back into his pouch.

The jōnin currently leaned against a tree, from where he could observe all his students. They were at training ground seven, the same place where he held his bell test two months ago. He was immensely proud of his students! Naruto, Sasuke and Hinata have grown tremendously under his tutelage. Not just in their mastery of the shinobi arts and teamwork, but also as individuals.

_Clang __Clang... __Clang __Clang __Clang... __Clang_

The sound of steel clashing against steel echoed through the air. Kakashi turned his head to the left and saw Yūgao Uzuki, who owed him a big favour ever since he once intercepted a fatal blow that would have crippled her, engage Sasuke in an intense sparring session, a kenjutsu only match. The boy was forced to mostly either block or dodge the relentless and _extremely_ precise swings of her katana with his much shorter tantō _(Sai's sword)_. Kakashi as well as Yūgao think a _chokutō (his sword in Shippūden)_ would suit him much better, but Sasuke still needs to grow before he could wield such a sword properly.

Despite using his _**Sharingan**_, which he awoke two weeks ago due to the intensity of his training, enhancing his perception to inhuman levels only matched by the **_Byakugan_**, two tomoe in each eye, granting him the ability to predict movements, recognize genjutsu and copy techniques, she nevertheless kept him on the defensive, leaving him neither time to counter nor to catch his breath.

Sasuke started to train very hard, pushing himself to the edge of his limits each day ever since Kakashi told him the entire story about that fateful mission to destroy the _Kannabi Bridge_, during which Obito had sacrificed himself to save Kakashi. His otherwise indifferent and cold pupil was even more touched by this story than by his speech about teamwork.

To Sasuke, this particular Uchiha contradicted everything his father taught him about how a _true _Uchiha was supposed to be, yet he managed to awake the **_Sharingan_**, proving his worth and noble lineage, even did the _unthinkable_, giving the clans ultimate secret and praised weapon to a _non-Uchiha_, his _comrade_, so he could protect this Rin girl in his stead. At the end of the story he was _close_ to crying. Luckily, no one else was in the vicinity and could see this brief moment of weakness. He probably would never hear the end of it! In his opinion, this Obito Uchiha was _a _true hero and he wants to make the ideals he represents his own.

From this moment onwards Sasuke trained harder than ever before in order to be able to protect his team and made amazing progress thanks to his two sensei's Kakashi and Yūgao, but also to catch up to Naruto. Over time he grew quite fond of his team. The trio spent a lot of time not just training together or doing missions, but outside of their duties as well. Hinata was a very kind girl and worked hard to improve herself, something he greatly respected. She did _not_ just sit idly by and watched him, drooling, as if he were a juicy piece of meat like all his fangirls. Kakashi was a great teacher, the best he could have asked for and he developed a friendly rivalry with Naruto too. He was growing stronger with each passing day, coming closer to his goal of avenging his clan. Everything thanks to them!

Yūgao's fierce assault eventually pushed him backwards, coming the edge of the river, which split the clearing in two, dangerously close! He hurriedly focused on emitting a constant stream of chakra from the bottom his left foot, putting his training to good use. Kakashi taught him along with Naruto tree and water walking. His blond rival had a much harder time mastering those two basic chakra control exercises though, mainly because of his _monstrous_ chakra reserves and Hinata, already knew how to do that, much to her teams surprise.

Raising his foot up high he drew his leg back and placed his foot on the water's surface, trying to maintain the _exact __right amount_ needed as to not fall into the cold river while predicting and blocking his sensei's flurry of attacks at the same time. This task proved to be a bit more difficult than Sasuke expected and he had to slip his guard just for short moment to concentrate on his foot, creating an opening Yūgao was quick to mercilessly exploit. The purple-haired ANBU aimed her katana at his head and thrust it forward extremely fast, cutting his right cheek, drawing some blood and making him hiss in pain, however, he didn't let that miniscule scratch disturb his chakra control and used his feet to leap backwards, putting some distance between them.

Sasuke jumped with enough force to land on the other side of the river, because fighting his sensei on the water was too risky as he previously experienced and got down on one knee, using his tantō to support himself. Sweat covered his brow and soaked his clothes. He was panting and scowled at his sparring partner, who smirked gleefully in response and appeared none the worse for wear. The Hokage allowed her to take off her mask during her time with team seven and Naruto was overjoyed to see her real face and expressed his gratitude for all she has done for him, confusing Sasuke and Hinata.

'Damn! I'm out of breath and still didn't manage to land a single hit. I must turn the tides, get in close and stay within her guard, however, that's easier said than done. I just wish she would stop cutting me for every single mistake I make!', he thought in frustration and a tiny amount of anger. Yūgao-sensei _always_ cut him somewhere whenever he let his guard down or failed to recognize and exploit a small opening to his advantage she intentionally offered him in her generosity once in a while. It was her reliable and prefered method of teaching someone in kenjutsu. Well, one thing was certain, unlike the academy teachers neither Yūgao nor Kakashi handled him with kid gloves. Something he really appreciated, because it showed effect. He was gradually improving and didn't want to be pampered at all.

When he first met Yūgao he didn't really think much of her, but after an embarrassing defeat and receiving many bleeding cuts Sasuke quickly changed his mind. Yūgao was the strongest kunoichi he encountered so far and truly amazing. In fact, right now she was actually _toying_ with him. It was infuriating! Sasuke wasn't sure if the few ninjutsu, mostly fire based since Kakashi only introduced him to the basics of his lightning chakra nature up till now, which he gained adequate control over, or the low-level genjutsu he now additionally had at his disposal, would be of any help in this fight either. Moreover, being able to read your enemies movements with the **_Sharingan_** was basically useless if your own body can't keep up with the speed of your adversary.

As soon as he had awoken it Kakashi immediately began to teach him everything a wielder of this feared dōjutsu needs to know. Some facts he already knew, but others were new for him and he was honestly impressed that Kakashi figured them out on his own, having mastered the dōjutsu to such a degree that he could cast genjutsu via eye contact alone, an ability only a fully matured **_Sharingan_** grants, thus being able to manipulate his opponent with subtle genjutsu, making the victim believe he could look into the future.

"Break time is over, Sasuke. Prepare yourself!", Yūgao yelled excitedly, apparently having decided her pupil has rested enough, a well-earned rest she remarked internally due to his exceptional performance so far and dashed at him again, running towards him across the water surface at low jōnin speed and preparing a devastating chop, overkill when fighting a genin, sure, but his surname was _Uchiha_, descendant of a clan renown for their dōjutsu and mastery over the fire element, still, many tend to forget a lot of highly proficient swordsmen hailed from this clan too and she could tell just from fighting him that the blood of a potentially magnificent swordsman was running through Sasuke's veins. Besides, by utilizing his **_Sharingan_** he had a major advantage over regular genin anyway.

'Your reflexes and speed have very much improved. I'm curious though, how much force can you handle?', she pondered her student's progress. The female ANBU never took on an apprentice nor did she ever teach a genin team, though, she occasionally showed rookie ANBU some tricks every now and then. Among them was also Sasuke's traitorous brother, Itachi Uchiha, whom Yūgao remembered well because he was the only Konoha shinobi who beat her in a kenjutsu only match.

She quickly realized that there was nothing she could teach him. Itachi was already an absolutely perfect polished diamond, possessing skill and wisdom far above anyone she knew except Hokage-sama himself, whereas Sasuke was still a proverbial diamond in the rough she could shape. Granted, the only flaw Itachi might have had was his state of mind. No one of his ANBU colleagues, including herself, could have ever imagined him going nuts, killing his entire family save for his younger brother and disappearing in the shadows afterwards.

Kakashi watched how Sasuke hastily stood up and readied himself, expecting the worst and proven right. That incoming blow would have chopped off his leg if he didn't block and so he did, gritting his teeth in intense agony 'Fuuuck! My arm!'. Yūgao's slash was so powerful that it not only sent Sasuke reeling back several meters and nearly made him let go of his sword, but the aftermath also caused the actual blade itself and even his entire right arm to shake from the enormous force now flowing through metal and limb!

However, as fascinating as it was seeing his raven-haired student getting his ass handed to Yūgao he was more interested in the battle that was about to start to his right, where Naruto, dressed in one of his old orange jumpsuits, and Hinata faced off. Just like Sasuke, both have immensely improved, Hinata maybe more so than Naruto. The old Hinata probably wouldn't have shown up to fight Naruto or perhaps surrendered beforehand.

She was no longer an overly insecure and anxious girl. Well, she still stuttered a bit, but over the course of the last two months it lessened considerably. Besides, she wasn't ashamed of her body anymore and recently discarded her awfully warm jacket, revealing a durable short-sleeved black shirt she wore underneath the jacket, that despite covering every part of her torso couldn't mask that Hinata had fairly well-developed breasts for such a young girl. The more time Hinata spent with Naruto, she _slowly_ came to realize that her _crush_ on him was actually admiration, similar to how a child admires his older sibling and not an actual romantic feeling. His high work ethic and will to never give up, no matter how hard the task ahead of him, inspired her to overcome her own limits and fears.

They stood about fifteen meters apart and as they gazed determined into each other eyes they offered their sparring partner a warm smile. The purpose of this fight was _not_ to determine the stronger shinobi, but rather to help the other refine their respective taijutsu style, hence they will of course refrain from using lethal techniques such as _**Rankyaku (Storm Leg)**_, which Naruto was now capable of performing once Kakashi introduced him to his wind chakra nature, a very rare one in Konoha and perfect for offensive types.

The blonde mastered the leaf cutting excercise, holding a leaf between one's palms and cutting it in half using wind chakra alone, after just _six weeks_, a task average jōnin usually need _six months_ to accomplish. It helped him realize that in order to do **_Rankyaku (Storm Leg) _**accordingly the force expelled from the leg has to be made thin and sharp like a blade to send out a _cutting_ wind. All in all, his progress was prodigious. He even learned two C-rank wind techniques, but to perform any higher and more destructive wind techniques without hurting himself or start training himself in the difficult art of air pressure manipulation Naruto will have to do daily chakra control exercises for quite some time due to his still horrible control.

Hinata slipped into a jūken defensive stance and activated her **_Byakugan_**, whose range extended from 50 to 110 meters during the last two months, making the veins near her temples bulge "I'm ready, you can c-come at me, Naruto."

Naruto nodded, prepared himself and complied "As you wish, **_Jūgon Ōgi: Fukurō Dataki (Stern Beast Secret Attack: Owl Strike)_**.", seemingly vanishing from sight, but not from Hinata's **_Byakugan_**. With the help of her dōjutsu she was able to track him and saw him circling her at insane speed, kicking off the ground eight times in the blink of an eye. She remained perfectly still and didn't panick though, instead stretched her senses and focused on her opponent.

All of a sudden, he threw a punch at her right cheek, but before it could connect with her soft skin Hinata bend her head backwards, successfully avoiding the strike. There was no time to sigh in relief though as she was forced to dodge yet another one, turning her body to the left while simultaneously taking a step back as to not getting hit in her stomach.

Naruto continued to bombard her with punches from all directions, which she all gracefully evaded thanks to her extreme agility and reflexes as well as her almost perfect 360 degree vision, for a few more moments, _drastically_ puling the sheer force of his strikes since he could very seriously hurt her otherwise, until Hinata yelled out "**_Jūkenpō: Ichigekishin (Gentle Fist Art: One Blow Body)!"_** and expelled chakra from all her tenketsu points at once with as much power as she could muster, unleashing a mighty blast into her immediate environment. It was strong enough to send the surprised Naruto tumbling backward, a predicament she could exploit and shifted her stance into one Naruto was all to familiar with. Frowning he thought 'Oh no, not this time, Hinata.'

**___"Jūkenhō: _Hakke Sanjūni Shō (_Gentle Fist Art: _Eight Trigrams Thirty-Two Palms)!"**

After calling out her attack she lunged at him with the intent to close 32 of his tenketsu points, severely hampering his chakra flow as well as inflicting a great deal of pain in the process, but Naruto was prepared. He focused on the movement of the air around him and readied his body.

**"_Kami-e (Paper Art)!"_**

"Hakke Two Hands!", she aimed her outstretched index and middle fingers at his torso, but he skillfully evaded, bending around the back of her hands with incredible grace, rivaling that of a Hyūga. Not discouraged by her failed attempt to hit him she quickly pulled her arms back and proceeded to attack with two more consecutive strikes.

"Four Hands!", Hinata missed again and this time followed with four successive strikes.

"Eight Hands!", and she missed yet again! 'How can he be so slick? That's almost inhuman!', she thought in astonishment at his display of dexterity and got ready to give it her all.

"16 Hands!", Naruto had a very hard time to either sidestep, duck under or bend around the next extremely precise and fast seven jabs and narrowly avoided the eighth... or so it seemed. Hinata unexpectedly bend her two fingers and the tip of her middle finger touched his shoulder for a split second, closing a tenketsu point and inflicted enough pain to disturb Naruto's focus. 'Gotcha!', she celebrated in her mind.

"32 Hands!", every single one of the last sixteen consecutive strikes she delivered hit their mark with such force that it sent Naruto skidding backwards some distance and knocked the wind out of him, but he managed to halt himself and only grimaced in discomfort, the pain was only half bad. 'It stings, just like last time.', he pondered and remembered his failed attempt to block that attack with his **_Tekkai (Iron Mass)_** during one of their previous matches. It did absolutely nothing to protect him from a jūken strike.

Naruto looked at the panting form of Hinata, who put her hands on her knees and tried to catch her breath. That powerful blast the girl used to throw him off-balance must have cost quite some chakra and she had the lowest stamina and chakra reserves of their team.

"You really have gotten better Hinata, dattebayo.", the blonde complimented her. Hinata exhaled deeply and her lips curved into a smile at her idols praise. She looked up, her dōjutsu still activate and replied "Thank you, so have you Naruto. Another r-round?"

"Your call.", he responded with a smirk and Hinata answered by running straight at him at full speed, ready to hit him with a non-lethal version of a basic jūken strike _**"Shōtei (Palm Heel Strike)!"**_.

Kakashi averted his gaze and fixed the ground in deep thought, mulling over what he just saw. 'Sasuke is gradually getting better and more versatile. Soon I will teach him several of my lighting based jutsu and once his _**Sharingan**_ is fully matured I'm going to intensify his training in genjutsu. It's only a matter of time until he gains the last tomoe, still, I have to beat his overly reliance on the _**Sharingan**_ out of his head. Furthermore, _if_ he proves himself worthy I might be willing to let him sign my ninken (ninja dogs) summoning contract.

Making Hinata familiar with her water chakra nature worked wonders and thanks to her extraordinary control she even mastered a C-rank water jutsu already. I'm glad I could convince her to learn elemental manipulation since it's frowned upon among the members of the main house to use anything else aside from the jūken, because of their foolish pride. In addition, her progress in jūken and taijutsu overall went through the roof and it looks like Hiashi has begun to teach her in the Hyūga clans secret ways. However, from what I saw she still lacks stamina and speed.

Naruto's prowess in taijutsu is terrifying, he even gives _me_ trouble. If it were up to me I'd promote him to to tokubetsu jōnin already. It's beyond me how he can possibly improve his taijutsu at such an inhuman rate. This can't possibly be hard work alone. Maybe the beast has something to do with it? However, it's not just his taijutsu, but his ninjutsu as well. He mastered the basics of his wind affinity in record time and shows great promise in fire techniques as well, perhaps also due to his tenant.

The only thing holding him back his horrendous chakra control. His massive chakra supply is a blessing and curse at the same time. Not only do his huge reserves destroy any hope that he could ever cast a genjutsu beyond D-rank, but it prevents him for the time being to reinforce his Rokushiki moves with chakra as well, because they require an enormous amount of concentration and coordination. Eventually though, in time, he will be able to that, creating _nintaijutsu_ techniques like the kunoichi of the isolated Nadeshiko Village as well as the current and previous Raikage have done before him. Naruto... you are a once in a lifetime genius and I'm sure your father and mother would be proud of you. I'm glad to be your sensei.'

Kakashi gazed up and decided to end today's training session. Training is important. However, being a shinobi includes fulfilling missions to keep the village running and to receive a paycheck.

**"Enough training for now! We have some missions to do! Go home, take a shower and meet me in front of the Hokage Tower**** in an hour."**, he shouted and everyone complied.

Sasuke sheathed his sword, carrying it strapped on his back like Kakashi once carried his father's blade, the _Hakkō Chakura Tō (White Light Chakra Sabre)_, that broke during the mission to destroy the _Kannabi Bridge_ and Yūgao gave him a short evaluation. She told him they would spar continuously on the water surface next time. Hinata opened Naruto's closed tenketsu points and offered Sasuke her self-made medicine to heal his cuts, which he gratefully accepted. Kakashi was so impressed with her medicine after he took a look at it a few days ago that he entered her in the next semesters medic classes at the hospital, knowing just how important medical support for a team in the field is due to his own experience since Rin bandaged him up so often, after one of his reckless moves in the past, that his sensei scolded him for. Lastly, the trio bid Yūgao farewell and went home to rest.

* * *

_Nyaaaaa_

"My cute little Tora-chan, I was so worried.", exclaimed the fire daimyō's wife as she squeezed the life out of that _beast_ of a cat. He didn't outwardly show it, but this sight gave Naruto, who had changed into his suit while he was at home, a great amount of satisfaction. While he loved animals he didn't feel any sympathy for it. That cat dared to scratch his _face_, to be more precise, his whisker marks, after he caught it in the blink of an eye with **_Soru (Shave)_**. They are very sensitive!

Team seven stood lined up in front of a desk, where Hiruzen, Iruka and some secretaries sat, waiting for their next mission assignment. Sasuke and Naruto were fed up. Why aren't academy students doing these chores and gain experience that way?! As soon as he became Hokage it will be like that. Naruto felt insulted by receiving such _missions_.

"I'm impressed with how fast your team completed this mission, Kakashi. Now what do we have here... painting a fence, shopping...", Hiruzen began and was promptly cut off by the jōnin, who raised his hand.

"Excuse me Hokage-sama, but after 38 D-rank missions I believe my team is more than ready for the next level."

"Kakashi-san, you can't be serious. They are far too inexperienced." Iruka tried to reason to which Naruto frowned. While he felt Iruka's concern for his safety he was still a bit angered. Does he really have so little faith in him?

Hiruzen took a puff from his pipe and followed "Kakashi, are you really sure? The world outside the walls is a dangerous place, you know that."

"They are more than ready." Kakashi answered seriously and met his gaze.

After a few seconds Hiruzen gave in "Alright, I trust your judgement. I herby assign team seven a C-rank escort mission..." Sasuke and Naruto smirked, but Hinata felt a bit nervous. "...Tazuna, you can come in and meet your bodyguards."

The door opened and a grey-haired man in his late fifties with dark eyes, a beard and glasses, dressed in a grey sleeveless shirt, beige pants held up by a band around his waist, sandals, a white towel around his neck, a rope tied around his forehead and a backpack strapped on his back entered the room and leaned against the door.

He took a sip from a bottle he held in his left hand, whose content was obviously alcohol from the way he moved and smelled. "What?! That's my escort? Is that some kind of joke? A kid with a butter knife on his back, a blind girl and a cat faced boy, who looks as if he's going to a business lunch! Well, at least the cyclops looks somewhat serious."

The mentioned genin's eyebrows twitched. 'Guess he needs a demonstration.' Naruto thought, grinned and calmly spoke "**Soru (Shave)**"

"So- what? Hey! Where's my bottle! And where is the boy?!" Tazuna asked first confused and later in a panick filled voice due to the empty feeling in his hand and loosing sight of the brat.

"Looking for something?", he heard someone question, turned his head to one of the windows in the office and spotted the blonde holding _his_ bottle out of the window.

'What happened?!', the secretaries thought in bewilderment.

Iruka looked speechless. 'What speed! A-Amazing!' He only saw a black and yellow blur moving.

'I see you have progressed under Kakashi's guidance. Maybe you really are ready for that mission.', the Hokage pondered and smiled.

"Hn show off." Sasuke remarked with a tiny amount of envy. He became _much_ faster in the last two months, but still couldn't match his blond rival... and friend in speed.

Kakashi just sighed inwardly 'Sometimes he behaves like a child, just like Kushina. Luckily, he acts like his father most of the time.'

"No! Give it back!", Tazuna hurriedly tried to rescue the precious liquid, but the blonde threw the bottle out. Tazuna went to his knees and cried anime tears to which the occupants of the room sweat dropped.

"Cough I hope that little demonstration eased your worries Tazuna. I'm even faster than he is..." 'But he's catching up quickly!', he added in his thoughts. Kakashi started to train harder again in order to get back into shape. After all, he now had a team to protect. "... and I assure you that I and my team will guard you with our lives and take you safely to... where is this trip going to take us by the way?"

Having composed himself and feeling much more safe than before Tazuna got back on his feet, pointed his thumb at his chest and began to brag with a wide smile "I'm a master bridge builder! The greatest there is in all the elemental nations! And I need you to take me safely to my home country Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves) and guard me for a week until I complete my greatest masterpiece."

Tazuna mulled the situation over in his half drunk state 'Gatō's goons won't be able to touch us with such monsters guarding me! Phew Here I thought the money wouldn't be enough to grant us sufficient protection.'

Kakashi clasped his hands together to get his students' attention. "You heard our client! Go home, gather enough supplies for _two_ weeks and we meet again in front of the south gate in one hour. Seal the supplies in a scroll as I have shown you..." he turned his head to their client "...Tazuna, wait there for us... and don't buy any alcohol.", he ordered, took a scroll with the mission details from Hiruzen and also went to gather his own supplies.

* * *

**_"Kai!"_**

**_"Sharingan!"_**

**_"Byakugan!"_**

"Whoa! What's wrong with the eyes of these two?!" Tazuna screamed in shock at the unfamiliar sight. Their sudden outburst almost gave him a heart attack!

Nami no Kuni is an isolated country, doesn't have any ninja and the last one he had seen there was about twenty years ago. He only heard rumours about people with strange eyes or stories as a child. Tazuna wasn't even a day in Konoha among them, but already thought that ninja are really weird people with a strange sense of fashion.

"Umm... Just what is this about?", Kakashi asked with a sweat drop.

Whereupon all three genin yelled at the same time, "I-Impossible! You are punctual!"

Sasuke and Hinata deactivated their dōjutsu. "Of course, this is a _serious_ mission.", he replied to which they scowled at him and he continued "Don't give me that look... Now assume formation. Hinata, you take the front and will scout the forward area every hundredth meter for traps and hidden enemies. I guard the back, Sasuke the left and Naruto the right side. Be on guard."

All hired ninja took position around Tazuna and the group began to march outside. Naruto stopped shortly before he was outside and consequently the rest did too and looked at him. The blond boy seemed to be in deep thought.

"Is something wrong, Naruto?", Kakashi inquired, worried for his students well-being.

As a child Naruto always dreamed about how the world outside those high intimidating walls, that confined him within the village, would be like. To meet foreign people, see different landscapes and villages, see and smell the ocean he heard and read about and fight other ninja. What adventures and dangers has the world outside to offer? One more step, just one more and he would be farther away from his birthplace than ever before, taking his very first adventure.

Naruto felt a hand on his shoulder, looked up and met Kakashi's eye, which reflected concern "Naruto, are you really ok? We will need you at your fullest."

"Naruto-kun, you are not a-alone.", his gaze wandered to Hinata, who smiled at him reassuringly.

"Hn don't tell me you are scared, dope. Are you a scaredy cat?", meeting his smirking friends gaze with a frown he replied "Hah In your dreams, teme."

Kakashi let go of him. Naruto felt all their concern and it touched his heart that he was so important to all of them. 'I won't let them down!' Finally, he addressed all his comrades "I'm really fine guys. I was just _never_ outside the village. I first had to cope with the thought." Naruto closed his eyes, took a deep breath, moved one step forward and stood for a moment in silence. He opened his eyes again, smiled brightly at them and raised a fist in the air "What are we waiting for? Let's bring Tazuna safely home, dattebayo!"

They (eye-)smiled back and regrouped around Tazuna, who thought it would be better to keep his mouth shut during their moment and headed towards Nami no Kuni.

* * *

The group walked along the road, which was flanked by several trees and bushes. Tazuna kept looking to his right at the red swirl on Naruto's back in deep thought and scratched his chin. 'Hmm I know I have seen this symbol before. I just can't put my finger on it.' They stopped again to let Hinata scan the surroundings.

**_'Byakugan'_**

Hinata suddenly began to give her teammates rapid hand signs, putting her team on edge and the two hidden shinobi thirty meters in front of the group immediately knew they have been discovered. They lost the moment of surprise and began to retreat at a high pace in order to tell their leader the interesting discovery they made. The Konoha ninja guarding Tazuna wouldn't follow them and risk a battle.

"They retreated.", Hinata observed and sighed in relief. She knew that as a ninja she eventually would have to fight for her life, but that didn't mean she was looking forward to it, in contrast to her predatory raven-haired teammate.

"What's going on?!", the perplexed Tazuna questioned.

"Shouldn't we hunt them down?", Sasuke asked with a grin and gripped the hilt of his tantō in anticipation. Finally a chance to test his skill in real combat!

"No, Sasuke! Our objective is to guard the client and not fight unnecessarily to still your thirst for battle. Hinata, what did they look like?"

"Both wear o-oxygen masks, clawed gauntlets and a Kirigakure forehead protector. One had a s-single horn attached to his forehead protector and a gauntlet on his right a-arm, whereas the other one had two horns and a gauntlet o-on his left arm."

Kakashi mentally skipped through the pages of the Bingo-Bukku (Bingo Book), which he had memorized with his **_Sharingan_** "...Gōzu and Meizu. The _Oni Kyōdai__ (Demon brothers)_."

His three students and Tazuna gave him questioning glances "Who?"

Kakashi made a mental note to let his students memorize the Bingo Book and enlightened them "Two former Kirigakure chūnin, now missing-nin. The Yondaime Mizukage, Yagura, wants their heads on a silver platter for assisting Zabuza Momochi, the _Kirigakure no Kijin (Demon of the Hidden Mist)_, former member of the_Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū_ (Swordsmen of the Mist) and _A-rank_ missing-nin, in his failed takeover. If they are here..."

His voice became deadly serious, a tone his students never heard till now "...it could mean Zabuza isn't far away. I doubt they just randomly stumbled upon us. I don't believe in _coincidence_..." he slowly turned his head towards Tazuna, who began to sweat bullets. Kakashi didn't suspect him, but his bodily reaction betrayed the bridge builder in the end and Naruto also felt something wasn't right with his additional sense and voiced it in a serious tone "Kakashi-sensei, I think..."

But the older ninja cut him off by raising his hand without looking away from their client "I know, Naruto. Tazuna, we need to talk... _now_." Said bridge builder faced the ground and replied "Sigh I guess you got me. There's no point in lying anymore."

"The possibility of facing the _Oni Kyōdai _alone makes this mission at least B-rank and if Zabuza is involved A-rank. Not to mention the unknown variables and number of foes. I want to know the truth. Who is after you and why did you lie?"

"You probably have heard about him... the shipping magnate Gatō. He has our entire country in his filthy hands and practically rules over it as its king. He enslaved us! Not even the daimyō can do anything about him. His thugs do as they please. They not only torture anyone openly who opposes him, but kill them as well, even children. My daughter's husband was also killed.

That little bastard has completely taken over our country's economy. We are depended on maritime trade and he locked the island, hence we are forced to buy only his goods to exorbitant prices. Through terror and poverty he keeps us on a tight leash and broke us! All the money I and a few friends of mine could gather was barely enough to hire ninja for a C-rank mission. The bridge, that will connect us to the mainland, is the only hope our people have left to ever gain our freedom back! We are so close to the sea right now, it isn't far anymore. Please!..."

Tazuna began to cry and got on his hands and knees. "Please! You can't abandon me now! I beg you! Not just in my name, but for every citizen of my country. Once the bridge is complete we will pay any price you demand! But please, help us..."

A moment in stunned silence passed before Kakashi bluntly replied "No" and Tazuna cried even harder.

**"Kakashi-sensei!"**, his students immediately and loudly protested. They desperately wanted to help the people of Nami no Kuni after they heard the old man's story. They were already close to the coast.

**"Quiet!"**, he ordered his students. Naruto quickly tried to reason "Why Kakashi-sensei?! He said they would pay us any price afterwards..."

Kakashi promptly cut him off and fixed his three students in an intense glare "It's not about the money! I won't lead my team to certain death! Do you know who Gatō is?! Do you know how dangerous a Swordsman of the Mist is?! Who knows how many ninja Gatō might have additionally hired?

I know you three want to do what your heart tells you to, you are still so young, but what would you have done if Gatō hired us to do his dirty work? You three have to realize that we are ninja, no heroes out of a fairy tale! It also pains me, but sometimes you have to kill your heart. That's part of being a shinobi. My responsibilities are the mission, which I hereby cancel due to our client lying to us and your safety. I will bring you home in one piece, no matter what, even if I have to condemn my soul."

Hinata cried, Sasuke closed his eyes, grit his teeth in anger and clenched his fists. Naruto's bangs hid his eyes and his mouth formed a thin line. He walked up to Tazuna and calmly declared "I'm going with you." to which everyone's eyes widened.

"Naruto... I _order_ you to abort the mission!"

Naruto met Kakashi's gaze determined "No Kakashi-sensei. I'm going to free this country once and for all. You guys don't have to follow me if you are afraid."

"You won't throw your life away like that. I'm going to stop you, even if you will hate me for it.", Kakashi threatened and brought his right hand close to his forehead protector. Hinata and Sasuke were now really worried. Both were much stronger than they were and if they fought there was little they could do to stop them.

The blonde answered with fire in his eyes "Listen, I don't care _who_ this Gatō is, _how influential_ he is, _how many_ thugs and ninja he commands or _how powerful_ this Zabuza fellow is! I'm not afraid to die! Innocent people are suffering because of him, that's why I'm going to kick his ass and everyone else's who stands in my way, even yours if you try to stop me! I won't stand idly by and allow him to do as he pleases! I will help everyone who comes to me and cries out for peace! That's _my__ nindō (Ninja way)_, dattebayo!"

The boy's eyes grew cold as ice and his look darkened. Naruto brought his arms in front of his torso, slid the concealed kunai in his right sleeve into his hand and pierced the palm of his left hand to emphasize his resolve without flinching and added "And the _only_ way to stop me... is to kill me." while never once breaking eye contact.

Like Tazuna, Sasuke was speechless and didn't really knew what to do or say and Hinata covered her gaping mouth with her hands in shock at that statement 'N-Naruto-kun'. Kakashi's lone eye widened and he saw a ghost of his past in the boy's look. 'O-Obito'

_Obito don't go after them!_

_You must obey my instructions._

_A shinobi must kill his emotions._

_I'm going to rescue Rin!_

Kakashi ran his right hand trough his hair, sighed heavily and groaned inwardly 'I won't let him go alone. Hokage-sama will demote me to genin for this.'

"Alright... _We_ are going to continue the mission, but Sasuke and Hinata are free to go back.", Kakashi said and first looked at Sasuke expectantly.

Sasuke smirked and replied "Hn Without me the dope will just trip over his own feet and die, of course I'm tagging along. Besides, we are a team."

Kakashi nodded and then met the gaze of the final member of team seven.

Hinata was afraid and swallowed. From what Kakashi told them they really could _die_. Suddenly several images entered her mind. She remembered all the happy times team seven had together. How much they laughed and smiled in each others company. The thought of never seeing them again was terrifying, not knowing if she could have done something to at least save one of them.

She steeled her resolve and answered "Y-You guys didn't let me b-behind when I was tied to that l-log and I won't abandon you n-now. If we d-die... we are going to die a-as a team."

Kakashi nodded again and Tazuna was relieved, because there was still hope thanks to the blond kid.

Naruto removed the kunai and Hinata offered him treatment, which he gratefully accepted with a smile. Once the blonde was bandaged up Kakashi addressed them all. "Before we go any further you must know with what we are dealing with. I will tell you everything I know about our enemies."

* * *

Gōzu and Meizu arrived safely at their hideout, provided by Gatō, finished their report and their leader, who sat on a comfortable couch, was more than pleased. Their leader was a tall and muscular man with short spiky black hair and brown eyes. His most distinctive features were his lack of eyebrows and the bandages he wore around the lower-half of his face down to his neck. Furthermore, he wore a sleeveless black shirt, black pants with a waist-guard, a forehead protector sideways around his brow and striped wrist and leg-warmers... Zabuza Momochi.

A truly intimidating, power-hungry and cruel man, who knows neither remorse nor pity. He became famous after he massacred his entire class at the Kirigakure ninja academy, over one hundred fellow students, which he also shared bonds with, as part of his graduation exam and at the same time lost any compassion he once had. After his cruel act this practice has been abolished, but his legend spread throughout the elemental nations.

So began the story of the _Kirigakure no Kijin (Demon of the Hidden Mist)_, who later became a Kiri-ANBU and joined the famous group of the _Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū__ (Swordsmen of the Mist)_, where he obtained his trademark blade, the Kubikiribōchō (Executioner's Blade) and learned the fearsome _Sairento Kiringu (Silent killing)_ technique.

The weapon he wields is legendary, passed down from one generation of the _Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū__ (Swordsmen of the Mist) _to the next. An extremely heavy and massive broadsword with a very long detachable handle and two cut outs, which can be used to decapitate the enemy. However, it's not the size and form alone that make it special. It can repair any damage inflicted to it almost instantly, by utilizing the iron in the opponent's blood. A fitting weapon for a bloodthirsty monster like him, indeed.

His booming laughter suddenly echoed through the facility "Haha This has to be my lucky day! A _Hyūga_, _Sharingan no Kakashi_ and two no name genin. If the girl is a member of the main branch the Yondaime Raikage will pay us our combined weight ten times in gold for her and even if she's not Kakashi's **_Sharingan_** will still be mine!"

It seemed like destiny itself was smiling at him! Killing the bridge builder and receiving Gatō's reward, also killing the annoying midget afterwards, shouldn't be too hard. Kakashi was the only real threat. Haku, Gōzu and Meizu will be more than enough to deal with two no name genin and the Hyūga.

Haku was his best tool, trump card and a truly gifted boy, yes, sometimes even he had a hard time to believe that Haku was actually a boy, even his voice was feminine. Sadly tough, Haku wasn't a perfect tool, because he's too soft. If that weakness wouldn't hold him back he dared to say the boy could beat _him_. His speed and strength are extraordinary, especially when used in conjunction with his **_Hyōton (Ice Style)_** kekkei genkai. Also, his taijutsu and analytic skills are top-notch. Gōzu and Meizu are good, but compared to Haku they are replaceable and just cannon fodder.

After this mission is done and if the girl truly is a main branch member he would hand the girl over to Kumo in order to collect the reward, but not before he removed one eye and implanted it into Haku, further increasing the boy's power. Zabuza knew how practical that dōjutsu is from an encounter with Ao, a member of the _Oinin Butai (Hunter-nin Corps)_, who came into possession of such an eye. Then, he finally would have collected enough money to finance a new takeover. Even better, with the **_Sharingan_** in his possession, a dōjutsu rumored to being able to tame a Bijū, Yagura won't know what hit him.

Zabuza's keen senses registered three people approaching him.

"Why are your useless lackeys back without his head?! And why are you just sitting here?! Move your ass and...", ranted a short brown-haired man wearing a business suit and sunglasses, flanked by his bodyguards, two former samurai who do every dirty job for him.

He supressed the urge to roll his eyes. That little midget was getting on his nerves and he didn't like the tone in which he spoke to him, as if he was one of his lackeys. In the blink of an eye, faster than the bodyguards could react, Zabuza swung his sword and the little man faced the end of his blade and began to sweat. The tip was touching his nose! His bodyguards were too stunned and afraid to move.

"Watch your tongue, Gatō! I'm not one of your underlings and won't let you order me around. We are _business partner_. I will bring you his head and you pay me. I just received valuable intel and will have to do some research. The target has hired a few ninja for his protection, but I can deal with them. Make sure you got the money ready. I accept only cash."

Zabuza withdrew his blade and left the room along with Gōzu and Meizu in order to meet Haku, do some research and work out a plan.

Gatō fumed inside. No one speaks to him like that! Zabuza will die slowly and painfully as soon as he completes the job. He began to grin maliciously 'Yes! Just like that village _hero_ back then. It was so satisfying and amusing.'

* * *

Team seven and Tazuna arrived on the island. Luckily, they didn't have to waste any chakra and water walk there. An old friend of Tazuna offered his services and transported them in his boat under the cover of thick mist. During that trip they saw the bridge and all of them agreed that the sight was a true eye candy.

'Tazuna doesn't seem to have exaggerated.', Kakashi thought as he took in their surroundings. The group walked alongside Tazuna through the settlement, that resembled a slum. The buildings were run down, some even crumbled. However, the people seemed to be in a far worse state than the buildings. Their faces reflected hopelessness, beggars sat on every street corner along with orphaned skinny children clad in rags. The times in which the streets were filled with laughter and joy have long since passed. It was a truly pitiful sight.

Hinata and Sasuke were shocked to the core, probably because they originate from wealthy clans and never once have they experienced or seen such poverty. Such living circumstances were almost non-existent in Konoha and they never went into those few districts. Naruto looked composed, but internally it tore his heart apart, because on the one hand he felt all their grief and misery with his additional sense, that appears to have expanded from close proximity to a ten meter radius around him and it could also tell him if someone was lying, and on the other hand he knew exactly how it is like to live on the street with your only possession being what you have on your body.

Aside from pity another feeling grew inside of him... rage. This Gatō... no this _monster_ should pray that they never meet. However, he didn't let his emotions get the better of him. That much he learned from his fight with Kakashi. If he really wants to help these people, he must keep his mind focused and calm in order to protect Tazuna, so he can finish the bridge.

After about twenty minutes of walking they reached Tazuna's home, located on the other side of the island, on the coast, without any incident and were warmly greeted by his daughter Tsunami, who squealed at the sight of Naruto, saying he looked so cute in his suit and his whisker marks were so adorable, which made him blush slightly and she began to prepare lunch for them. Hinata offered her some help in the kitchen and she gratefully accepted. Sasuke took the first shift and patrolled on the rooftop. The team also briefly met her son Inari, who spared them a short glance, ran upstairs and locked himself in his room. Naruto could feel his inner turmoil and grief, something was bothering this boy.

"So, what is the plan and what about my family?", Tazuna asked.

Kakashi mulled the situation over "Hmm we can't risk taking them to the construction site. They would be easy targets and guarding you against Zabuza and who knows how many enemies will already be difficult enough. However, we can't let them unguarded either, because both could be used as hostages. It would be best to leave Naruto with them. He's the strongest member of my team and can handle that task alone. They will be in good hands. I will work out the details during the day."

Half an hour later everyone sat at the table and ate a delicious meal. Hinata ate with an active **_Byakugan_**, so Sasuke could join them, freaking out Tsunami and Inari, who still hadn't said a single word since team seven arrived and sat opposite to Naruto.

"Wow! That's so good, dattebayo!", Naruto happily complimented the two women's cooking skills.

"Why?", Inari questioned out of nowhere.

"Huh Why what?", the blonde questioned in confusion and everybody looked expectantly at Inari.

Inari began to cry and shout **"Why are you acting so carefree! No matter how strong you think you are no one is a match for Gatō! You are just four people! What can you possibly do?! You will die! So why are you here?! There are no heroes in this world! No one can save us! Do you want to die?!..."**

Naruto couldn't take it anymore, stood up, leaned against the desk and stared with cold eyes at Inari. This action made the younger boy cringe in fear and Naruto growled. **"Shut up, brat!** Your grandfather is risking his life for you, your mother and this entire country! The least you can do is believe in him you spineless coward! We are going to protect him!"

"B-Believe?! T-There is n-no hope!", Inari replied between sobs and ran upstairs again.

"Inari!", Tsunami and Tazuna called him out.

"Wasn't that a bit harsh, Naruto?", Kakashi scolded his pupil, who huffed in response and sat down again.

"What was that about?", Sasuke asked perplexed.

"Please, forgive him. Since that incident he changed.", Tazuna responded with watering eyes.

"W-What incident?", Hinata asked Tazuna curiously, who took a deep breath. "My daughter's husband Kaiza has been openly tortured and killed by Gatō for opposing him..." Tsunami visibly tensed.

"...Though they were not blood related Inari nevertheless saw him as his father. After he rescued him from drowning they were inseparable. Not much time passed until he and Tsunami came close. Kaiza was hailed as the village hero, after the dam broke and he fixed it by jumping into the raging tides when no other found the courage to do it. His favourite phrase was _you must protect what is precious to you with both your arms even if it costs you your life_. We couldn't have been happier..." His look darkened.

"... But then _he_ came. Kaiza, of course, opposed Gatō and got caught by his goons. They..." A sob escaped his throat and Tsunami shed tears. "...They cut off his arms in front of everyone, _including _Inari and killed him afterwards."

A depressing silence followed and Naruto clenched his fists until he drew blood and broke the silence "I will show him!..."

That got everyone's attention and he continued "...I will show him that there is still some Good in this world and that it's worth fighting for, dattebayo!" stunning the entire group and Tsunami, for a brief moment, saw Kaiza in her mind's eye when she looked at Naruto.

His declaration brought smiles back onto the faces of the group and they continued to eat. Inari, who sat in front of the open window in his room, heard that statement and cried even harder. His stream of tears landed on Kaiza's picture.

Unnoticed by everyone, except for Kakashi, Naruto added a small phrase to his declaration barely above a whisper _"I'm going to bring him to justice."_

* * *

Later, in the afternoon, Naruto accompanied Tsunami to the pier, who didn't expect so many guests. The group emptied her already small stockpile of food and she had to catch some fresh fish for dinner. She carried her fishing rod while he carried a large box for the fish. It was Kakashi's shift and he guarded the house from the roof and the rest remained inside the house.

Both reached the end of the pier and Naruto, after he laid the box down, was wide-eyed at the sight before him "Wow! The ocean."

Tsunami was a bit confused "Huh? You have never seen the ocean before? Didn't you come here in a boat?"

"Well, when we crossed the distance it was foggy and when we reached your house I was on guard and didn't took the time to enjoy the sight... it's beautiful.", he replied while he scratched the back of his head. She smiled at him and sat down.

Naruto observed Tsunami for a while and was impressed at how many fish she caught in a short amount of time. "Amazing, do you fish everyday? You are really good at it."

Her eyes reflected nostalgia "Kaiza taught me... I'm glad he did. The fish on the market is far too expensive. It saves us a lot of money... Say, have you caught fish before."

"When I was young I tried to catch some in a river with my bare hands, but it was too difficult, so I focused on the animals in the forest or stole food.", he answered with a sad expression.

'Poor boy. He must have had a rough childhood.', she mused and wanted to cheer him up. "You want to try it?", she said and offered him her fishing rod. "Umm why not? Yes, thank you.", he replied, took it and sat down next to her.

About ten minutes passed with no success. "This time for sure!", he exclaimed and pulled out the string, empty. "Urgh What am I doing wrong?", he ranted in frustration. Tsunami giggled at his childish antics and he pouted at her. 'He's so cute when he's angry.'

"Alright, I will give you some pointers...", she went behind him and started to massage his shoulders and neck. 'Wow! What muscles.', she thought in astonishment. He first stiffened at the personal contact, but quickly melted in her magical hands and moaned, one time even purred. 'Huh?! Did he just purr or was that my imagination?'

"You are too stiff, relax your arms and your hold on the rod. Close your eyes and be calm as the sea... Clear your thoughts and exhale deeply...", she instructed and the blonde complied. It was like meditation, he noted.

She stopped massaging him and instructed further "Try to feel the world around you and focus on the water's sound... Feel its rhythm..." Naruto was in deep trance now. "Once you can feel it you will become one with the fish..."

The blonde could indeed feel something and wanted to pull out the string. Tsunami saw his tensing shoulders. "... No! Shh Don't rush it. The fish will sense your stress, relax again and focus..." Naruto felt it again, but this time remained perfectly still "Good, concentrate on the water's rhythm again. It will tell you what the fish is going to do..." He sensed that the fish will bite the hook "Now! Pull!"

_Splash_

He caught the fish! "Hurray! I caught one! You see? See?", he shouted and showed Tsunami proudly his prey.

She giggled. It has been so long since she heard a child this excited. "I'm impressed, Naruto! You really are a fast learner and caught a really big one too.", she praised him and he smiled brightly. _(He sharpened his Observation Haki)_

"Tsk", Inari scowled, who had watched everything unfold from behind his open window.

* * *

After dinner it was Naruto's turn and he had to guard the area from the roof. The sun has settled down by now and since Hinata had the best eyes by far of the group she would guard the house during the night. She went outside, not far from the house to a pond, for some light training a few hours ago and assured Kakashi she would scout the area regularly with her dōjutsu.

Kakashi approached Sasuke, who went through some kenjutsu kata's outside the house and ordered "Sasuke, don't overdo it, save your energy. Go and fetch Hinata. She might have lost track of time. You will find her at the pond fifty meters to the north. Her shift begins shortly." to which he nodded and did as he was told.

* * *

The raven-haired boy walked through the woods and suddenly heard a sound that put him on edge 'What was that?' He activated his **_Sharingan_**, because it was so dark in the forest and sneaked up to the area where the sound came from. Shoving some vegetation carefully to the side he came upon a sight that would be forever burned in his mind since his dōjutsu was active.

_Splash_

Hinata was training on the surface of the pond. Something he saw her regularly doing, nothing unusual. However, this time she was _naked_! His eyes became as wide as saucers and he just couldn't will his body to move. Hinata moved with incredible grace and spun around herself. She expelled her chakra out of her tenketsu points, whirling up droplets of water, creating a sphere around her, that reflected the moonlight and made her shine like an angel. _(She did that in the filler episode 148 in part one)_ It was breathtaking and he only knew one word to describe this scene 'Beautiful' A word he never used to describe anything.

Sasuke felt and heard his heartbeat increase as well as his breath. In addition, his stomach gave off a strange feeling it never did before and his face heat up. His mind couldn't process any coherent thought and his body reached out for her... only to lose balance and fall face first into the cold pond.

_Splash_

The sound put her on edge and she activated her dōjutsu '**_Byakugan!_** Oh n-no! S-Sasuke saw me?!' She became all red and sprinted to the shore, took her clothes and ran as fast as she could back to the house.

Sasuke resurfaced and pulled himself out of the water, coughed a few times and deactivated his **_Sharingan_**. What should he do now? He couldn't stay here forever so he moved back to the house. Luckily, he didn't stumble upon Hinata and went directly to bed, but Sasuke wouldn't be able to sleep that night though, because when he closed his eyes he would always see Hinata in all her glory and his face flushed.


	7. Dark Justice Part 2

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the world government and be under Whitebeard's protection.

**Published:** 02.26.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts'

"Human speech" ; **"Shouting/Demonic influenced voice"**

_**Jutsu/Rokushiki technique**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 7 - Dark Justice Part 2**

Morning arrived quickly. Tazuna and his family were in the kitchen and team seven sat together in the living room. Naruto looked confused at his teammates strange behaviour. Hinata and Sasuke avoided looking at each other the whole time and were unfocused in each other's presence. Kakashi also noticed this and asked, "You two were tense this entire morning. Is something wrong?"

"N-Nothing Kakashi-sensei", Sasuke _stuttered_, Hinata turned red as a tomato and hid her face behind her hands. Naruto raised an eyebrow at their reactions and Kakashi knew he would have to end that, now! "I don't know why you two behave like that, but you must get ahold of yourself! Whatever business you two have will have to wait. For now you must focus! Can you do that?!"

After a brief moment both nodded determined in response. After all, a country was at stake. Kakashi stared at them for a while and once he confirmed their resolve for himself he spoke again "Alright, now listen. Tazuna needs approximately a week to finish the bridge, so the enemy will definitely attack in that time span. There's no way to tell when, but I think soon, maybe even today.

Furthermore, they probably suspect that we will let at least one of us guard Tazuna's house and attack us simultaneously when we are separated. That's why I want Naruto to guard the house alone, because they will think capturing Tsunami or Inari is going to be the easiest part. They are in for a big surprise..." Naruto grinned at that. "...Hinata, Sasuke, you will accompany me to the construction site. Here is the plan..."

* * *

Tazuna, Sasuke, Hinata and Kakashi arrived at the construction site and stumbled upon the mauled corpses of several workers. "What happened?!", Tazuna exclaimed in shock and wanted to check if one of them was still alive, but Kakashi grabbed him by his shoulder to stop him, shook his head and the three ninja formed a triangle around him.

Suddenly, they were surrounded by eight Zabuza's in a circle formation. Hinata activated her **_Byakugan_** and calmly informed her team about the nature of the clones "**_Mizu Bunshin (Water clones)_**". Soon after those words left her lips they swarmed out to kill them as fast they could, knowing that a water clone could only contain ten percent of the user's strength at max.

Hinata skillfully evaded the wild sword slashes of three clones and took each of them out with a single tab. Sasuke drew his tantō with his right hand, faced two and cleaved them in half with a smirk. Kakashi pulled out a kunai, dealt with the rest and after he destroyed the last one he made an observation 'That's too easy! They aren't even trying. He's up to something...' He looked around and noticed all the puddles that have formed '...That's it! He wants to soak the ground so he can perform water techniques much faster.'

"Kakashi-sensei! Four of them thirty m-meters to the east!", Hinata shouted and moved together with Kakashi to face the new threat and Sasuke stayed close to Tazuna. They came face to face with Zabuza, a masked Haku, Gōzu and Meizu, whose gauntlets were connected by a blood stained shuriken-chain.

Zabuza grabbed the hilt of his blade with his right hand and laughed "Hehe _Sharingan no Kakashi_, it's an honour to meet a man of your reputation. I must say your brats aren't half bad.", he greeted and complimented the genin. Moreover, he analyzed their level of skill 'The jūken is indeed as deadly as the rumors indicate and the pretty boy's speed and kenjutsu are top-notch for a genin.'

Kakashi retorted "Zabuza Momochi, the _Kirigakure no Kijin (Demon of the Hidden Mist)_... I see you brought a guest and your two lap-dogs along." and thought 'Not good. We don't know anything about the masked boy. Furthermore, that mask resembles that of a member of the _Oinin Butai (Hunter-nin Corps)_. If he's ANBU level we are in serious trouble! I hate unknown variables.'

That last comment hit a nerve "What?! How dare you not take us seriously?! I'm going to skin you alive!"

"Meizu!", Gōzu scolded his younger brother for giving into such a taunt like an amateur. Why was he the only one with a brain in his family?

"Enough with this chit-chat! We have business to do. Gōzu, Meizu, take on pretty boy and the old fart. Haku, you know what to do."

"Yes, Zabuza-sama", the masked boy replied in a monotonous tone.

Kakashi hurriedly pulled out another kunai with a ball attached to it from his pouch, twirled it and threw it at the group with as much power as he could muster, but Haku hit the projectile with a senbon needle in mid-air with pinpoint accuracy, stopping its momentum and the ball exploded in a huge wall of smoke, obscuring both groups view of each other, except for Hinata, who could see everything clearly thanks to her dōjutsu.

Kakashi mulled the masked boys move over 'That boy uses senbon needles, the weapon of choice for mid to long-range fighters with medical knowledge. His reflexes and aim were _absolutely perfect_. He's dangerous! I would say he's at least chūnin level, maybe even tokubetsu jōnin from what I have observed so far.'

Zabuza took a good sniff and frowned in disgust at the smell. 'Bah A stink bomb? Did he knew I was coming? Was he trying to mark us in case I use the **_Kirigakure no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu)_**? After all, he's rumored to have a better nose than an Inuzuka. You will need more than a childs prank to beat me.'

Once the smoke screen cleared up Zabuza shouted **"Attack!"** and the members of his group lunged at their respective targets.

_Clang_

Zabuza moved at great speed, drew his blade, met Kakashi's kunai and a power struggle ensued with neither of the two gaining any ground. The two fighters used both their arms to add more force. Kakashi grunted in exertion and clenched his teeth 'What a monster! He definitely deserves his title... His strength is insane!', He couldn't hold against that for long!

* * *

Haku bombarded Hinata relentlessly with an onslaught of senbon needles, most of which the girl expertly dodged. Her movements were incredibly graceful and fluid, yet, some of the projectiles were so fast that she couldn't completely avoid them, therefore she ejected chakra _constantly_ from her tenketsu points, covering the area around her and used it to deflected those by slowing them down or, if necessary, slightly change their trajectory so they would miss.

While this technique made up for her blind spot, enabling her to sense _every_ incoming attack in a small area that method is far from being a perfect defense against physical attacks like the **_Hakkeshō Kaiten (Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven)_**, a technique only taught to members of the main house, because it was depleting her reserves so rapidly that she would die in a matter of seconds. That was a Hyūga's last line of defense.

She tried to get close to her masked foe, but her speed wasn't at Sasuke's level yet. Her enemy was _very_ fast and kept his distance. He unexpectedly stopped and spoke "Please give up and let yourself be captured. I take no pleasure in fighting you and I don't want to hurt you."

Hinata came to halt as well and her face reflected her perplexity 'Is he trying to confuse me and catch me off-guard? Besides, what does he mean by _capture_? Isn't he supposed to kill me?... Oh no! They want my **_Byakugan_**.', she thought in worry and replied "I feel the s-same, honestly, but even if you don't, your comrades on the other hand s-seem more than eager and I will protect my team!"

"Are they precious to you?", he inquired.

"Yes! I would give my life to save them if necessary.", she answered without hesitation and silence followed.

Haku nodded in respect "You are indeed strong. However, I also have someone precious to me and I want to make his dream come true more than anything else. Please, don't hate me for what I'm going to do."

* * *

"Don't move Tazuna. I will be back shortly, it won't take long.", Sasuke said nonchalantly and moved away from a terrified looking Tazuna to face Gōzu and Meizu with his tantō in hand.

Gōzu smirked behind his mask. "Hehe cocky little brat. Do you honestly think it will be that easy. People like you scream the loudest. Oh I will enjoy your cries for mercy. Meizu, this time don't lose your cool. I will take the lead."

Sasuke saw an opportunity and pointed with his tantō at Meizu "Say, why do you let yourself get scolded and ordered around like that? It's obvious to me that you are the stronger one. The strong rule over the weak, right? Not the other way around."

Gōzu snorted "What are trying to pull? Do you really think..."

"Or am I wrong and you really are what Kakashi-sensei said... a _lap-dog_.", Sasuke mocked with an arrogant Uchiha-style grin.

Meizu's fury was getting the better of him and he was blinded by rage "Why you little!", he roared in a battle cry and charged at the foolish _genin_, ready to tear him apart with his gauntlet.

"Meizu! No!", Gōzu tried to stop his impulsive younger brother, but the chain was already pulling him along.

That was an ideal opening he could exploit. He activated his **_Sharingan_** and sprinted towards the rampaging chūnin with all the speed he could muster, whose eyes widened in shock.

_Squelch_

A splatter of blood landed on Sasuke's face. He plunged his sword through the space between two of Meizu's left lower ribs in an upward angle, while simultaneously avoiding the gauntlet with the help of his dōjutsu, penetrating his heart, killing him.

**"Meizu!"**, Gōzu shouted with watering eyes. While they often bickered and insulted each other, his brother still meant everything to him. Without him he would have never come this far in his life.

Sasuke grinned at his accomplishment. His first kill! However, as he glanced up into the lifeless eyes of his slowly collapsing enemy, his smirk faded. It wasn't nearly as glorious or satisfying as he hoped this moment would be. Lastly, for good measure, Sasuke twisted his sword slightly while pulling it out like Yūgao-sensei taught him, just to be sure, swiftly jumped away and landed on his feet. Meizu's corpse landed on the ground with a thud.

_Clang_

Sasuke had no time to recover though, because his **_Sharingan_** predicted an incoming attack and he had to dodge the animal like, but very dangerous slashes of Gōzu, who had detached the shuriken-chain from his gauntlet. Pulling out some shuriken with his free left hand, he threw them at Gōzu, who easily deflected them with his gauntlet, not fazed and simply continued his assault as if nothing had happened.

* * *

Zabuza and Kakashi still struggled and stared at each other. 'I can feel my arms give out!', Kakashi thought in concern. "Hmpf Useless maggots. Can't even kill a pathetic genin.", Zabuza spat in disgust after he heard Gōzu's obvious cry of loss.

"Your comrade... Urgh has been killed and that's all you... have to say?", Kakashi said and sweat dripped down from his exposed brow due to exertion. That would have been the perfect moment to cast a genjustu on his foe via eye contact, but he couldn't lift his forehead protector, because both his hands were occupied.

"_Comrade_? Hah, shinobi are _tools_. He was just cannon fodder and can be easily replaced.", was the _Demon of the Hidden Mist's_ blunt answer to which the Kakashi growled. He really hated people with such believes.

Another cry echoed through the air, but this time it was Haku's. _**"Hyōton: Makyō Hyōshō (******__Ice Style_: Crystal Ice Mirrors)!"

'Hyōton?!', Kakashi thought in curiosity at the unfamiliar term as well as concern for Hinata. Whatever the effect of that jutsu is, it certainly sounds bad. 'Naruto, hurry! I have a bad feeling about this.'

'Good the Hyūga is trapped. Time to kill him and take my price.', Zabuza thought and smirked in anticipation. Except for Meizu's death everything was going exactly as planned. He ended the struggle and jumped backwards as did Kakashi to bring some distance between them.

Kakashi breathed heavily and his arms ached. He pulled up his forehead protector, revealing his fully matured **_Sharingan_**. His opponent was strong and Hinata might be in danger. Time to fight with no holds barred and end this.

Zabuza immediately closed his eyes and stretched his other senses with chakra, mainly his hearing. "Haha I did my homework Kakashi. I will render your most powerful tool useless and take it from your corpse. Hehe", he said confident of victory and performed the "**_Kirigakure no Jutsu (Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu)_**".

He created a very thick mist around the entire area. However, he made sure that Haku would still be able to see some distance with his keen eyes and made it _extremely_ thick around Kakashi. Now, the two powers of the **_Sharingan_** were practically useless. With his eyes closed Kakashi wouldn't be able to cast any genjutsu on him through eye contact and the thick mist, made out of water and his own chakra, hampered the predictive abilities of that dōjutsu.

Difficult fighting conditions for most shinobi, but not for him, a master of the _Sairento Kiringu (Silent killing)_ technique. The Hyūga would also be able to move freely in the mist if Haku wouldn't have captured her in his prison of ice. That valuable information he obtained from his brief encounter with Ao. He grinned wickedly. His favourite game was about to start. Time to _hunt_.

* * *

Haku nodded in respect "You are indeed strong. However, I also have someone precious to me and I want to make his dream come true more than anything else. Please, don't hate me for what I'm going to do."

The masked boy did a series of hand seals and the temperature around Hinata dropped abruptly. She began to shiver, even saw her own breath and regretted to have discarded her warm jacket.

_**"Hyōton: Makyō Hyōshō (******__Ice Style_: Crystal Ice Mirrors)!"

In the blink of an eye, Hinata was surrounded by twenty-one floating ice mirrors, made of the water from the air and puddles on the ground with no escape route. The boy expectantly walked _into_ a mirror and his reflection could be seen in every single mirror of the dome, holding senbon needles between his fingers. Even worse, she couldn't distinguish the reflections from the original with her dōjutsu since the mirrors were mostly made of Haku's own chakra, hence they covered him.

'W-What i-is t-this?', she thought in horror and gnashing teeth. What even added to her fear was the chakra infused thick mist, that emerged out of nowhere, followed by a booming demonic voice.

**"Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney, heart. Which one should I go after?"**

Her legs trembled in tremendous fear. It was like a nightmare! Despite all her anxiety she managed to compose herself though. She wasn't just fighting for herself, but for her team and this country! 'N-No! I can't think l-like that. They a-are counting on m-me! I h-have to find a way o-out of here.'

"Prepare yourself. I will now show you my true speed. Can your _all-seeing_ eyes keep up?"

Her brain had almost no time to process the flood of information that followed Haku's cocky statement and her instincts took over. In an instant countless senbon needles filled the air and flew towards her! Training with Naruto to read and dodge strikes from seemingly all directions proved to be very useful in this situation. However, despite using all the agility her Hyūga physique granted her to dodge the projectiles she nevertheless was forced to sometimes deflect the projectiles with chakra, depleting her reserves rapidly and a single senbon needle occasionally slipped through her defense because of the sheer amount of projectiles and her blind spot. Luckily she managed to deflect any needle that would have hit a vital spot.

After about fifteen seconds Haku stopped to observe the results of his assault. Every time he moved between the mirrors costs him a huge amount of chakra and he would gradually slow down. So he couldn't afford to waste his moves. Also, while he moved between the mirrors at light speed, he couldn't throw his senbon needles at the same speed, just with his normal power, which was still very impressive though.

Hinata panted heavily, but most of her body seemed fine. The majority of the needles that had hit her sticked out of her back, a fact, which didn't went unnoticed by Haku 'Hmm If she really has a 360 degree field of vision she wouldn't have been hit by so many of them in her back. That leads to only one logical conclusion. The _**Byakugan**__ must_ have a blind spot, now I just have to find it.'

'W-What happened? He moved so i-incredibly fast. Much f-faster than Naruto-kun and Kakashi-sensei combined.', Hinata thought in fear. It seemed hopeless! She couldn't move far from her spot, couldn't track the real Haku and lost over a third of her chakra during her opponent's last attack in just a few seconds. The only positive fact she noticed was that Haku's chakra dropped as well, but he had _much_ more than her. 'N-Naruto-kun, please hurry.'

* * *

Gōzu relentlessly attacked Sasuke with all he had. The boy tried to hit him with his sword, kunai and shuriken and had to admit while this guy wasn't nearly as fast as he was his defense on the other hand was difficult to pass by, mainly because of his poisoned metal gauntlet. Sasuke knew that if he got hit by that due to a reckless move it would be over. That weapon began to annoy him. Luckily, his enemy was already showing signs of fatigue. The moment he has been waiting for!

Over the course of the battle he heard someone shout the name of a to him dangerous sounding technique. His teammates might be in trouble. Seeing his opponent struggle Sasuke attacked. Gōzu tried to slash him with his claws, but he rolled under the attack and managed to slit the Achilles tendon of Gōzu's right leg, making his adversary fall down on one knee and yell in pain "Ahh you little pest!"

The fight was as good as over. He hurriedly straightened himself, let go of his sword, turned to face his immobilized enemy, jumped backwards to build some distance, executed a series hand seals and inhaled deeply.

**_"_****_Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu_** (Fire Style: Grand Fireball Technique)!"

Sasuke's fireball flew towards the incapacitated Gōzu, who turned his head and _tried_ to scream, but he was engulfed by the flames and turned into a pile of ash before he could. The stench of burned human flesh filled the immediate environment. Sasuke stared at the scorched spot for a moment. He defeated two famous chūnin! Yet, for some reason, he didn't feel proud. Sasuke picked up his sword and sheathed it. Everything grew quite and all of a sudden thick mist filled the air, followed by a voice that sent chills down his spine.

**"Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney, heart. Which one should I go after?"**

He could _barely_ see his hands in front of his face, even with his dōjutsu. What should he do? Now that he dealt with his enemies he had to assist his teammates and began to search for them.

* * *

Kakashi was on guard and closed his normal eye. The silence was unbearable! 'It has been a long time since I had to fight under such difficult circumstances. I don't know where he is, thus jutsu would only waste a lot of chakra and genjutsu are useless. I can only dodge.'

**"Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney, heart. Which one should I go after?"**

'Please, I'm no rookie. That doesn't intimidate me.', Kakashi scoffed. Not even a second after that thought entered his mind he had to deflect a volley of shuriken with his kunai, but had no time to exhale in relief, because shortly afterwards he was forced to bend his head backwards to evade Zabuza's mighty blade that would have decapitated him. 'Woah That was close! I didn't hear him approaching! He's truly a master of the the _Sairento Kiringu (Silent killing)_ technique. Maybe _that_ can buy me some extra time to dodge.' He reached into his pouch and threw several tiny objects into the mist.

"Hehe Caltrops? Are you getting desperate? Well, I can't blame you, after all, you are the second one who dodged that attack.", the malicious voice announced with pride seemingly from all directions.

"Really, who was the first?", Kakashi asked, sounding interested. Zabuza seemed to enjoy playing with his prey. Small talk might give him a hint on his position or at the very least stall some time until Naruto arrives. Sadly though, he received no answer. Some time passed. Each second in that silent hell made of mist, muscles always tense, felt like an eternity. If he dropped his guard even for a moment in a false sense of security he will die.

"Hehe Looks like you should discipline your students more often, Kakashi. One of them is neglecting his duty. Should I pay the old man a visit? I haven't greeted him properly yet and I don't want to be a bad host."

'He's after Tazuna!', Kakashi thought in panick and sprinted towards the general direction where he last saw Sasuke and Tazuna. A big mistake.

* * *

_Kyaaa_

Hinata screamed in agony and collapsed on her hands and knees. She looked like a pincushion, had cuts all over her body and every movement hurt. This guy found her weakness and aimed for her blind spot! She was physically exhausted and depleted already more than three-quarters of her chakra. Her reserves were dangerously low! To conserve chakra she already reduced the range of her **_Byakugan_** to five meters and the needles sticking out of her were additionally restricting her mobility. If this continues she will pass out soon.

**_"_****_Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu_** (Fire Style: Grand Fireball Technique)!"

A giant and powerful fireball engulfed the top mirrors of her prison and she wanted to celebrate internally, but her eyes widened in disbelief. The fireball did no damage at all!

Sasuke himself was also surprised 'I-Impossible! If heat won't work then physical force.' He pulled out some shuriken and kunai and threw them with all his might at a mirror, but they just bounced off. 'Oh come on! Where is the dope when you need him!'

Haku emerged from one of the mirrors and looked at Sasuke '**_Sharingan_**?! So he's a full-blooded Uchiha. Zabuza-sama will want him alive. Kumo's reward will be even higher.' The masked boy addressed Sasuke "That won't work. Your fire technique is far too weak to melt my mirrors and you can't throw your projectiles with enough power to even crack them. The only way to save her is to come inside."

"No! Don't come inside! It's certain death! The only reason why I'm not dead is... Kyaaa", Hinata hastily tried to warn her teammate, but Haku cut her off and continued his assault as part of his plan 'I will use her as a bait to lure him inside.'

Sasuke hesitated and argued with himself. If even Hinata with her **_Byakugan_** couldn't defend herself in there then what chance does he have? If he died in there he wouldn't be able to avenge his clan, but hearing her pain filled cry was unbearable!

_In the ninja world, those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash._

He remembered that phrase and his body moved on his own.

_Clang_

Sasuke was now inside and deflected a needle that would have pierced Hinata's thigh with his tantō. He began to swiftly remove some of the needles in order to give her some mobility back and asked "Hinata, can you stand?", while never taking one eye away from the mirror Haku currently occupied. He tracked him with his **_Sharingan_** while he threw his needles at Hinata.

A cry echoed trough the air, that seemed to have caught Haku's attention, buying them some time.

Hinata shakily got back onto her feet, breathed heavily and informed her teammate about what she found out "He's g-getting... s-slower the... l-longer he... maintains the j-jutsu... and the more... he m-moves."

He gave her his last two kunai, because it was obvious that she was low on chakra, so she would deflect the needles with them and spoke "I will cover your back and you mine. We will cover our blind spots. You said he's getting slower, so you must endure this until I can hit him. Without you I won't make it."

'Good plan, but it won't work. I still have half of my chakra left, whereas the girl looks like she will collapse soon.', Haku analyzed and prepared himself to strike. The mirrors illuminated and the air was filled with needles again. Both genin stood back to back and worked in perfect unison. Not a single needle passed their combined defense.

Haku intensified his assaulted, giving his all and focused more on Hinata than Sasuke. It began to show effect and some needles pierced her again. "Hinata! Don't give up!", Sasuke said, while he focused on Haku. Tracking him became much easier.

Haku left one of his mirrors and time seemed to slow down 'Now burn bastard!' Sasuke let his tantō fall to the ground, performed the necessary seals and aimed his jutsu at their flying enemy.

**_"Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu (Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu)!"_**

Instead of a single large one Sasuke created a volley of small fireballs, which are much faster than a single large one. However, much to his surprise Haku evaded them and only one scorched his pants 'What, he can dodge them in mid-flight?!' To make matters worse, Hinata collapsed on her knees again and deactivated her **_Byakugan_**. It was looking bad!

"I admire your resolve, but..."

**"Grab a hold! Fūton: Daitoppa (Wind Style: Great Breakthrough)!"**

* * *

Kakashi sprinted towards Tazuna's last position, only to run straight into Zabuza's blade, that pierced him right through his torso. His lone eye widened and blood gushed out of his wound. "Hehe Caring for others is a weakne... **AAAAAHHHHH**"

_Kakashi_ dissolved into lighting and electrocuted Zabuza. _Tazuna_, who wandered seemingly aimless in the mist received the lightning shadow clones memories and ran at his _full_ speed in the direction the scream originated from. A puff of smoke engulfed Tazuna and revealed the real Kakashi charging his signature attack **_"Raikiri (Lightning Blade)!"_**.

Zabuza saw a blue shimmer coming closer and tried to will his body to move 'Shit move!' His body responded just in time and he avoided certain death, by dodging to his right. However, the attack still hit his left upper-arm and inflicted a grievous wound, burning the flesh and skin, making him grunt in pain.

Both fighters passed each other. Zabuza quickly closed his eyes and concealed himself in the mist once again. The pain was grand, but he could ignore it. What he couldn't ignore on the other hand was that his arm hung limp. 'I can't perform any ninjutsu like that! Furthermore, where is the bridge builder? At least my other arm is ok and I can still wield my blade one handed.'

"Where is the bridge builder and when did you create that **_Raiton: Kage Bunshin (Lightning Style: Shadow Clone Jutsu)_**?!", Zabuza growled.

Kakashi used up two third of his chakra by now and felt worn-out. His active _**Sharingan**_ was draining his reserves even further at a fast pace due to him not being a full-blooded Uchiha. That special shadow clone, a normal shadow clone _and_ his finisher were taxing techniques. He must save his chakra from now on. It would be best to stall more time until Naruto arrives. 'I'm getting worried. He should have arrived a long time ago.'

"Before my team arrived at the bridge I created it to take my place and went ahead. I hid myself under the bridge and also witnessed how you and the _Oni Kyōdai__ (Demon brothers)_ massacred the workers."

"...I'm honestly impressed. I haven't noticed you and neither did my best tool.", Zabuza remarked in astonishment.

Kakashi frowned at the word _tool_ and continued "Well, I kept good distance and was really careful..." 'Experience and ANBU training helped too.' "... Also, do you remember the smoke screen?"

Zabuza frowned at the memory of the disgusting smell "Yes, I thought that stink bomb was supposed to mark us, so you could track us with your nose in a mist like this one."

"That would have been a _really_ helpful side effect, but its main purpose was to simply block your view. I came out of hiding, formed a **_Kage Bunshin (Shadow clone)_** and used the **_Kawarimi no Jutsu (Substitution Jutsu)_** to substitute myself with Tazuna while the smoke and stench distracted you. I immediately used a **_Henge (Transformation Jutsu)_** to look like Tazuna, put up an act and held my distance so you wouldn't notice the disguise. My clone took care of Tazuna."

'Hmm So he used that clone to learn what I'm capable of, clever and another one is running around. Good to know. While I still have three-quarter of my chakra left I'm wounded and can't afford to play anymore. I almost died! He lives up to his name.', Zabuza noted and spoke "Not bad. Now, let's..."

**"Grab a hold! Fūton: Daitoppa (Wind Style: Great Breakthrough)!"**

'Finally!', all members of team seven collectively thought. Kakashi channeled chakra to his feet. Sasuke grabbed the semi-conscious Hinata _tightly_ around her waist and did the same as Kakashi. What followed was comparable to a hurricane and the raging winds blew away the mist. Haku was unaffected, because he hid himself in one of his mirrors and Zabuza slammed his sword into the concrete. Once that storm subsided Kakashi's shadow clone emerged from under the bridge with Tazuna on his back and let him down, but didn't disperse itself to guard Tazuna and eventually assist the original if necessary.

"I hope I'm not late to the party.", commented a serious looking Naruto, who stood close to Haku's ice mirrors. His expression became much more sinister after he laid his eyes on Hinata.

"Dope! What took you so long?! Have you found a ramen bar along the way and stopped for a bite to eat?!", Sasuke scowled at him, but Naruto replied with a question of his own. "Is she alive?" to which Sasuke nodded.

Haku narrowed his eyes at the blonde behind his mask 'Who is this boy?'

Zabuza couldn't believe his eyes. 'What?! That _kid_ used such a powerful wind technique and doesn't look like he's tired at all! He should be half dead!' An ordinary wind jutsu couldn't blow his chakra infused mist away like that. It was only possible if the user puts an extreme load of chakra into it.

"To answer your question, it wasn't my fault.", Naruto defended himself.

* * *

**Flashback**

"Hehe that was fun, Zōri.", exclaimed a tall, brown-haired and bare-chested man to his companion. He wore an eye-patch over his right eye, his left side was tattooed and he carried a katana on his right side.

"Yes, I agree Waraji, but you played a bit too long with that boar. We have a job to do.", answered a man, only few inches smaller than Waraji, with bluish-white hair, covered mostly by his purple hat. He had black eyes with lined markings tattooed under them, wore a blue jacket and carried a katana on his left side. Both were ex samurai and now Gatō's bodyguards.

"Says the guy who arrived five minutes late because he just had to bet with a thimble rigger and lost 10.000 Ryo. You should know that all of them cheat.", Waraji retorted and Zōri growled in response "Don't remind me."

Both walked out of the woods and Tazuna's house came into view. Zōri looked at Waraji "There it is. Let's kill their guardian, grab that bitch and her brat and be done with it." They walked towards the building, but stopped because all of a sudden a blond boy in a suit landed in front of them and they grinned wickedly. It will be fun to cut him into pieces.

Naruto was disgusted at the feeling he received from them. They clutched the hilt of their swords and lunged at him simultaneously with a battle cry. As they were almost in reach he said _**"Soru (Shave)" **_and all they cut was air, because their target just seemed to have vanished! Their eyes widened, however, not from confusion or shock, but due to the blonde's index fingers piercing the back of their necks, killing them.**_"Tsuin Shigan (Twin Finger Pistol)"_**, he called out the name of his attack, pulled his fingers out, landed on his feet and cleaned them with his handkerchief while their bodies and swords fell onto the ground with a thud.

'They just send these two pathetic weaklings?', he thought in suspicion and a bit of disappointment should it turn out to be true. After he scouted the immediate area he went back into the house, where Tsunami and Inari sat in the kitchen and addressed them "It's over. You are safe. I'm going to aid my team now and free you once and for all, dattebayo."

Tsunami wordlessly nodded and he turned to leave. However, before he left the room Inari said "You are just running towards your own death!" Naruto briefly stopped, but didn't even bother to turn and replied "We will see." and ran to assist his team.

**Flashback End**

* * *

"To answer your question, it wasn't my fault.", Naruto defended himself.

Sasuke put Hinata's left arm around his shoulder and neck to support her. She tried to identify the silhouette with her blurry vision 'N-Naruto-kun?'. Hinata overused her _**Byakugan**_ to perceive Haku's deadly hailstorm of needles and it put her eyes under immense strain, but she would regain her vision quickly.

Haku saw that both were distracted and decided to use this moment to his advantage. 'I must take them out as fast as I can. The blonde one is powerful and I can't let them intervene.' He flew straight at a mirror from where he could hit Sasuke's neck in his blind spot at the right angle to put him in a death like state, only to meet a fist in midair.**_"_****___Jūgon_** (Stern Beast)!" The punch was strong enough to send a _small_ shockwave through the air.

Naruto had used **_Geppō_****_ (Moonwalk)_** in conjunction with **_Soru (Shave)_**, leaving thin cracks in the concrete, to jump with all the power he could muster and intercepted Haku. The force shattered his mask and send him flying right through one of his own mirrors for a considerable distance. Naruto grunted in pain, using this inferior **_Kamisori (Razor)_** puts his leg muscles under immense strain and he risked to tear them, but he had to save his teammates at all cost.

**"Haku!"**, Zabuza cried out and Kakashi raised an eyebrow. 'After all his talk about shinobi being replaceable tools he seems to care about this boy though. Maybe there is still some humanity left in him.' and nodded at his shadow clone, that used this moment of emotional distraction.

Said boy landed hard on the ground and rolled a few times until he stopped. Zabuza's face reflected utter shock. No one has ever been able to _physically_ hit Haku in his ice dome, which now collapsed around the three genin and the boy's strength was astounding, maybe even on par with his own.

Suddenly, his honed senses warned him to dodge an incoming attack. He looked to his left and saw Kakashi running straight at him, holding a spiralling blue sphere in his right hand. 'What is that?!', he thought and prepared himself to dodge and retaliate with a slash of his blade, but his eyes widened when he felt a strong grip around his neck and good arm. While the real Kakashi distracted him the shadow clone sneaked up on him during Haku's defeat. The clone restrained his movements and sent chakra to its feet in order to stick to the ground and hold Zabuza in place. The missing-nin used his superior strength to overpower the clone and it showed effect, but it was already too late to escape death.

_**"Rasengan!"**_, Kakashi called out the name of the technique and slammed the spiraling chakra sphere into Zabuza's ribcage, shredding it open and sending out a gush of blood, that coated him and the ground in red. His _**Sharingan**_ would burn this gruesome picture forever into his mind. While he could have used his signature move he didn't want to waste any more chakra than necessary, no need to show off and his sensei's technique was deadly in capable hands.

**"AAAHH..."**, Zabuza's cry of agony quickly died down. Kakashi, whose clone dispersed itself, pulled his hand out of his opponent's body, jumped backwards and watched the last moments of the _Kirigakure no Kijin (Demon of the Hidden Mist)_ in silent respect as did his genin. Zabuza's body fell forward and his last thought was _'Things go dark, the pain fades away... Hehe So it ends here, eh. Killed at the hands of Sharingan no Kakashi. I was never meant to die of old age anyway and I will wait for you on the other side for a rematch... Haku, thank you for everything. I hope we never meet in the afterlife, because... I go to Hell...'_

_Clang_

_Thud_

Haku's eyes shot open, because he heard his masters scream. He slowly pushed himself up with his arms through sheer willpower alone, spat a glob of blood and shakily got back on his feet. Only to clutch his head and fall on his knees again at the sight of his master's corpse. He sobbed, trembled and released a heart wrenching cry that echoed through the air.

**'Zabuza-sama!'**

All attention was now on him, but he didn't care. Haku started to wail 'I... I failed to protect you... Zabuza-sama...' and he remembered the first time they met 'You gave me a purpose... and took me in when everyone else rejected me... I can't live in a world without you... I'm not needed anymore... A tool without a wielder.'

Meanwhile, team seven and Tazuna moved closer to each other and Sasuke asked "Sensei, what about him?"

"I don't know if it's save to approach him.", he replied.

Suddenly Haku got up again, putting the team on edge and he looked at Hinata and Sasuke with his tear-stained feminine face and spoke "You two... are strong."

'What does he mean? I was the one who defeated him.', Naruto thought in confusion and cocked an eyebrow.

The boy turned his body and faced his master's corpse again "Zabuza-sama", cried harder and executed seals with _one_ hand, stunning the group. Using the water in his immediate environment he formed ice needles that floated all around him.

'What is he planning?', the members of team seven and Tazuna thought collectively.

Haku stuttered out between choked sobs _**"**__**Hyōton:**_ Sensatsu Suishō (Ice Style: A Thousand Needles of Death)"

The needles flew towards Haku. Naruto tried to stop him **"Wait!"**, but it was already too late and the boy was impaled by his own attack. The genin and Tazuna were horrified. Kakashi watched with a sad expression 'They must have shared a very special bond.' covered his **_Sharingan_** and sat down. That battle took a toll on him and he had to rest now. He glanced at Sasuke, who still had his dōjutsu active... _three_ tomoe in each eye. Silence followed and Sasuke, who put Hinata carefully down finally deactivated his **_Sharingan_**.

About a minute passed and Tazuna was the first to break the uncomfortable silence. "So... it's over now?"

Kakashi and Naruto frowned. They sensed trouble and Kakashi replied "I don't think so." Both turned their heads towards the incomplete part of the bridge and their gesture was mimicked by the others. In the distance a large crowd, that had arrived with a boat, approached them, led by a small figure. The crowd revealed to be a small army of criminals, armed with all kinds of weapons. Swords, sledgehammers, spears, clubs, knifes... literally anything that could cut or shred an opponent into pieces or break bones and their expressions were... sinister. They stopped about twenty meters in front of the group.

Kakashi became worried. 'In our weakened state neither Hinata nor I can be of any help against so many opponents. Sasuke doesn't show it, but I know he's tired as well. That leaves only Naruto. He seems fit, but can he really take them on all of them by himself? We have to retreat and rest.'

"Well, well, well. That missing-nin failed. Well, I guess if you want something done right you have to do it yourself.", a small man with brown hair, sunglasses and a business suit announced with a grin. He glanced at Zabuza's corpse and the grin never left his face, on the contrary, it even grew wider at the sight of the pool of blood that surrounded the corpse "A pity I couldn't kill him myself, but he seemed to have _suffered_. I can take solace from that fact." and addressed Tazuna, who stepped back in fear "And you. You have been a thorn in my flesh for so long. I will never leave this country. You and your people belong to me. I own you. Your are my property. I... "

Naruto had heard enough. Rage was burning inside of him and the words of that despicable midget fueled it even more. The air around him changed and he moved forward to face Gatō. Kakashi put a hand on his shoulder and Naruto turned his head to look at his sensei. His eyes were red and slitted, but his voice was calm "Let... me... go." Facts that made Kakashi lone eye grew wide in dread and he let go of the boy, who let his bangs shadow his eyes and continued his walk. The others haven't noticed this physical change yet. Sasuke protested "W-What is the dope thinking? Is he out of his mind? Sensei!" and Kakashi cut him off "Quiet, Sasuke!"

Gatō saw the blonde slowly approaching him, who stopped about ten meters in front of him and asked "Who are you, kid?"

Naruto answered with his own question "Are you Gatō?" to which the small man adjusted his glasses and declared proudly "Hehe Of course, the one and only!"

"You will never hurt someone again. I will stop you right here and now. I'm going to bring you to justice..._Yami no Seigi (Dark Justice)._", Naruto suddenly exclaimed. After a few seconds of silence Gatō and his goons began to snicker and soon burst out into a fit of laughter. 'This is going to get ugly!', thought Kakashi.

"Haha _You_ will stop _me?_ Don't make me laugh! What can a kid like you... _do_." The last syllable he spoke with fear clearly evident in his voice as he met the boys eyes, who during his reply had slowly raised his head and the men behind him yelped.

Naruto's features have changed. Aside from being red and slitted his eyes were surrounded by a black pigmentation. His lips turned black and his canine teeth grew longer and sharper as did his nails. Furthermore, his whisker marks widened and thickened, making him look even more feral and his blond hair became longer and spikier. Despite only facing his back Tazuna and the rest of team seven noticed that something about Naruto was odd. However, much to Kakashi's surprise he didn't leak killing intent... well not much at least.

**_"Soru (Shave)"_**

In an instant, Naruto stood in front of Gatō, holding him by his throat with his left hand and lifted the slightly taller and heavier man up, who reacted on instinct and grabbed the boy's outstretched forearm with his hands. His sunglasses fell down. It happened so fast that not even Kakashi, who was sweating bullets at the moment, saw the boy moving! Everyone was shocked and unable to move. Naruto kept eye contact with Gatō, who pissed himself. His pee ran down his pants and dripped onto the ground. Naruto's grip was loose enough so that Gatō would still be able to speak.

The blonde spoke in a demonic influenced voice** "You enjoy seeing other people suffer! The lives and feelings of others mean absolutely nothing to you! You brought misery and grief to the people of ****Nami no Kuni**** for your own amusement and profit!"**

"P-Please... don't k-k-kill m-me I-I c-can give y-you e-e-everything you d-desire! Argh", his grip tightened.

Naruto snorted **"You want me to spare your life?! Did you spare Kaiza's life?!"**

"Kai...za? Urgh", Naruto was now choking him.

**"Let me refresh your memory! _You must protect what is precious to you with both your arms even if it costs you your life!_ Does that ring a bell?!..."** Gatō was unable to speak so he just wordlessly nodded. He indeed remembered that phrase. **"... You tore his family apart and even killed him in front of them! For that alone I won't forgive you!"**

After Naruto finished the last line of his speech he pulled his right arm back, extended his index finger and rapidly pushed it into multiple parts of Gatō's torso.

_**"Shigan **__Ōren_ (Finger Pistol: Yellow Lotus)!"

He made sure to avoid any vital points, but the wounds were still fatal and without treatment Gatō would bleed to death within the next two minutes, give or take a few seconds and experience agonizing pain. However, Naruto wasn't finished yet. He threw Gatō off the bridge without moving away from his spot as if he was a piece of garbage to let him drown.

_Splash_

Hinata, Sasuke and Tazuna couldn't believe their eyes and stood rooted to their spot, staring incredulously. Just what was going on? The once kind and cheerful Naruto seemed to be gone. Kakashi didn't really knew what to think 'It was obviously Naruto who spoke and not the _Kyūbi_. What is going on? Can he control that power?'

Naruto now fixed the horrified crowd of criminals in a deadly glare. One of them mustered up some courage and shakily pointed his weapon at the kyūbified Naruto and said "W-What are y-you l-looking at... S-Stay away m-monster! W-We outnumber y-you!"

**"He might have been the head, but you were the neck that supported him. You are as guilty as he was!"**

'I-Is he g-going to...', Kakashi began to think, but stopped his train of thoughts when he heard Naruto shout_** "Soru (Shave)"**_. What followed was a gruesome massacre! Kakashi saw many cruel acts in his life, but few were comparable to the bloodbath he now witnessed. His sensei's son mowed down the crowd to the last man and showed no mercy, mauling the criminals.

The Kyūbi's chakra seemed to have amplified his speed, strength and resistance several times. At first, they tried to defend themselves, but against Naruto's techniques any resistance was futile. Most of their weapons either didn't do any damage at all or broke against Naruto's **_Tekkai (Iron Mass)_**! Those who witnessed that quickly lost hope and ran for their lives. Many tried to reach the boat or to jump off the bridge, but Naruto wouldn't let them. He pierced them with **_Shigan (Finger Pistol)_**, sliced through several at once with **_Rankyaku (Storm Leg)_** and sometimes teared one of them apart with his raw strength alone! Their cries echoed through the air and the corpses lied in a sea of blood. Also, the sickening stench of death filled the air.

Tazuna fell onto his knees and vomited. Hinata hid her eyes behind her hands and cried. Sasuke trembled in tremendous fear. That sight resurfaced some of the cruel pictures his brother showed him countless of times. How could his brother do something like that to his own family? Kakashi wasn't affected that much, since he saw massacres comparable to that. He was mostly worried that Naruto would attack them! After about a minute it was finally over.

_Drip Drip Drip_

Blood dripped down from Naruto's hands, which were now soaked in the red liquid as was a good part of his once black suit. He stood between piles of corpses and body parts in an ocean of blood and stared seemingly at noting in particular. The number of people he killed today was 107. After what felt like an eternity Naruto faced the last four still breathing people on the bridge and saw their horrified looks. Partially for what he did, but also because of his appearance. He was no moron and of course noticed his longer and sharper teeth and nails.

A voice began to scream in his head... a voice that was not his own! **'Kill them! Kill them! Make them scream! ...'**

Naruto's bloodlust was grand and his heart raced, but he could suppress it with the mental discipline and willpower he had. He wouldn't hurt innocent people and certainly not his precious people! So he ignored the voice. Naruto felt vile chakra flow through his chakra pathways and how it damaged his body. It hurt! He closed his eyes and focused on dispersing the chakra and he slowly changed back. Just what was that? It definitely came out of his belly. When he couldn't feel a single trace of it anymore he opened his eyes, which were blue again and approached the stunned group.

Naruto saw Sasuke trembling and asked with a mocking smirk "Whats wrong teme, Are you a scaredy cat?"

"Naruto! Do you realize what you have done?! Doesn't it affect you at all?!", a wide-eyed Kakashi inquired. How could he shrug that off like that, even joke afterwards?

"Why should it affect me? They were criminals so I killed them in the name of justice. They didn't deserve to live in the first place, so they are dead.", he stated in a matter of fact tone and shrugged.

_Slap_

'H-Hinata?!', they thought in surprise. Naruto's left cheek stung a bit. She was sobbing and screamed at him **"They d-didn't deserve to l-live?! Who are you to decide that?!"**

"Every single one of them was rotten to the core, Hinata. I... felt it and I won't apologize for what I have done. Evil shall prosper in this world. I believe in _Yami no Seigi (Dark Justice)_.", he defended himself. After what he did they had an idea what he meant with that phrase. Hinata tackled him down and began to beat Naruto's face, who didn't do anything against the beating he received. Sasuke, Kakashi and Tazuna were speechless again.

**"Who are you?! You are not Naruto! You are a monster! A heartless killing machine!"**, her tears landed on his bloody face, who also began to cry. Seeing her sad and her comment hurt him more than any physical wound possibly could. Her beating continued for a moment until Kakashi grabbed her wrist.

"Hinata, stop! You know how stubborn he is. If he believes in that we won't be able to change it by force... We might have been forced to kill them anyway. The fact that he doesn't attack you or even tries to defend himself proves that you are more important to him than anything else, he's still Naruto!", he said and thought 'A lot of things happened today that will scar them for life.'

Hinata closed her eyes and mulled his words over. It was true! She opened them again and looked into Naruto's teary orbs. A monster wouldn't cry. She got up and offered him a hand, despite seeing all the blood on his "I'm sorry for calling you a monster, Naruto.", which he took and nodded, accepting her apology. She helped him up.

Kakashi took a _deep_ breath and began to speak "Listen, it's over now. I have some things to do. As soon as I'm finished we will go back to Tazuna's house, rest, eat and clean ourselves. Once I feel better I will... clean this mess with water and fire jutsu so Tazuna can complete the bridge and we will stay until it's finished, understand?" to which they all nodded.

Kakashi went to Meizu's, Haku's and Zabuza's corpses and sealed them into scrolls as well as the blade. From Meizu's and Zabuza's body Konoha might learn some secrets of Kirigakure and the Kubikiribōchō (Executioner's Blade) would be a trophy for the village, showing the world Konoha's strength. However, he would bury Haku out of respect for Zabuza and the boy was _officially_ no ninja. Once his job has been done they set off and neither of them said a single word until they arrived at their destination.

* * *

Unbeknownst to all of them, the events on the bridge have been watched from afar through telescopes by two carefully hidden Kumogakure spies on the mainland, who really enjoyed the free show.

"Man, that blond kid could become dangerous ninja in the future. Did you see the hurricane he caused and how he changed? He must have an unknown kekkei genkai and massacred 105 people _(plus Waraji and Zōri)_. Hell, some weapons even broke against his skin and I couldn't see him move! That boy's kekkei genkai seems to be a combination of **_Kōton (Steel style)_** and **_Swift release_**.

Furthermore, the Uchiha boy defeated the _Oni Kyōdai__ (Demon brothers) _without much trouble and that jutsu Kakashi used to kill Zabuza was amazing. Shape manipulation at its finest. A shame the damn mist hid a good part of the fight.", the first one said.

"Yea, I also would have liked to see what happened inside. Once they leave we will infiltrate the island and find out their names.", the other one replied.

* * *

The group reached Tazuna's home and the sight of all the blood on Naruto disturbed Tsunami and Inari. Tazuna told both what he saw, but of course he let all the gruesome details out, making them speechless, especially Inari. The ninja fought and won! They were free, just like Naruto said! He now believed in heroes again! Tazuna would soon announce their freedom and the names of their liberators to the citizens and mobilize them to finish the bridge. The people celebrated the entire night, during which Kakashi cleaned the mess on the bridge.

Team seven continued its mission dutifully and supervised the construction of the bridge. The people cheered when they saw them and called them their heroes, some even took pictures. The genin would smile back at the citizens as well as converse with them every now and then. Sometimes, during their stay, a small war broke out between the Naruto and Sasuke fangirls, with the latter often emerging victorious due to their advantage in numbers since Sasuke had approximately four times more fangirls.

As time went by Naruto, Sasuke and Hinata regained some of their cheerfulness back after Kakashi talked with each of them individually for his mission report and gave them encouraging words. They all performed exceptionally well.

Though, one thing that troubled Kakashi during his talk with Naruto was that the boy questioned him if he knew why he partially transformed on the bridge. He of course denied, but the blonde seemed to somehow know that he lied and was very persistent. In the end Kakashi told him that only the Hokage could tell him and Naruto seemed to accept the answer for now. He really hoped the boy wouldn't tear the Hokage Tower apart when the Hokage reveals the truth to him... if he tells him.

With the help of the entire village Tazuna completed his masterpiece in just three days instead of a weak and team seven had to go home. They bid farewell to Tazuna and his family and just waved goodbye to the rest. Naruto was sad that he wouldn't be able to see Tsunami for probably a very long time. He felt that he bonded with her during their stay and their farewell was very emotional. They hugged each other affectionately and she kissed his forehead, making his cheeks flush and giggled at the cute sight.

The group marched from one end of the bridge to the other and could still hear the cheers on the other side. As Tazuna's family watched their retreating backs Tsunami asked "Dad, you still haven't named the bridge?" and Inari agreed "Yes, mom is right."

"Hmm..." He tried to remember the events on the bridge in order to think of a fitting name and remembered what Naruto believes in. "Oh I have a good one... _The Bridge of Dark Justice_."


	8. Naruto's Pride

**Disclaimer:** I neither own Naruto nor One Piece. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and One Piece to Eiichiro Oda. If I did the elemental continent would be a secluded large island in the One Piece world, not controlled by the World Government and be under Whitebeard's protection.

**AN: **I'm back and here we go, chapter eight! Yes, I know it has been a _very_ long time and I apologize for my tardiness. This chapter was particularly difficult for me to write and it took ages until I was finally pleased enough with the result to post it. Also, other important things, especially my job, kept me fairly busy and I was depressed for quite a while because my relationship broke up. All in all, in future, I won't announce any deadlines anymore. A chapter will be released when it's ready, simple as that. Now, that being said, back to the matter in hand.

**In case you haven't noticed, I have rewritten all previous chapters and uploaded them some time ago!** Don't worry, you don't have to read the whole story again in order to be able to keep up. The only _significant_ adjustments are the following:

1. In chapter one, the conversation between Kuma and Naruto: I added Naruto's train of thoughts, which that crucial part previously lacked.

2. I tried to dissolve the "info dump" in the first half of chapter six due to many readers complaining about it and after having read that for myself again I completely agree. It was brutal to read. Furthermore, Naruto has fire as his secondary element, due to Kurama's influence during Kushina's pregnancy. Kakashi only taught him wind techniques for now, because he believes in teamwork and wants that Sasuke and Naruto use collaboration attacks. Nevertheless, he showed Naruto some low-level D-rank fire techniques to ignite a campfire, boil water or warm up his hands during cool nights or in cold regions.

3. I had to slightly modify the Haku vs Hinata fight in chapter seven, because of a mistake on my part and I apologize for that. An unarmed Hyūga can only deflect/redirect projectiles with chakra when they either spin (Hakkeshō Kaiten) or if they cover their immediate environment with their own chakra. The way it was written before gave the impression that she used a weak Shinra Tensei.

Moreover, I put some thought into the plot and decided to deviate from what I originally planed. Taking that into consideration the _most suitable_ candidates to be paired with Naruto were Shion, Amaru and Shizuka. Ultimately, I chose Shizuka, because on the one hand her background intrigues me and on the other hand she's a proud, very skilled and strong kunoichi as well as a nintaijutsu user, a perfect match for this Naruto._  
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**Published:** 06.09.2013

**Last edited:** 07.03.2013

'Human thoughts'

"Human speech" ; **"Shouting"**

_**Jutsu/Rokushiki technique**_

* * *

**Rokushiki no Naruto**

**Chapter 8 - Naruto's Pride**

Team seven was heading home at a moderate pace, moving along a sparsely used road leading to Konoha's east gate. Kakashi was taking the lead, followed closely by Hinata and Sasuke, who walked next to each other and Naruto not far behind them. Hinata walked with her hands folded behind her back, marveling at the beautiful red and orange colors of the sunset on the horizon to her left, captivated by its beauty, and Sasuke was memorizing the Bingo Book to her right with his **_Sharingan_**.

Kakashi decided to let all of them memorize the book, because it not only provides combat relevant and verified intel about missing-nin and wanted criminals, but many dangerous regular shinobi as well and handed the copy he carried with him to a bored Sasuke. After all, possessing trustworthy and up to date information about your foe's abilities beforehand can make the difference between victory and defeat.

His blond pupil apparently also wanted to use time productively and tried to burst a rubber ball using _only_ his chakra, which he held tightly in his right palm and stared at it intently, but nonetheless paid attention to his surroundings like every decent shinobi should. Beads of sweat covered his face and he focused on making the air inside the ball rotate in multiple directions at once with his chakra, the second stage out of three required to overcome in order to master the _**Rasengan**_.

Naruto was mesmerized by the spiraling blue sphere ever since he saw Kakashi finishing off Zabuza with it and asked, or rather pestered and pleaded, his sensei to teach him this jutsu, who agreed and explained him the basics as well as its origins, albeit somewhat reluctantly. Needless to say, the boy was utterly speechless.

One thing is certain, he definitely doesn't want to be on the receiving end of that technique, especially after he witnessed the damage it can cause to the human body and one unfortunate tree that served as a target for demonstration, not even with his most powerful **_Tekkai (Iron Mass)_**. The sheer destructive force of this still incomplete technique is in a league of its own, literally as if someone held the devastating power of a miniature typhoon in hand!

Luckily, there was no need to worry about such a scenario, because only two people in the entire world know how to perform that jutsu, his sensei and the _Toad Sage_ Jiraiya, both allies and famous shinobi, yet, like the Yondaime Hokage himself, the man who had invented the technique, they were unable to add their elemental affinity to it, something Naruto intended to accomplish. He would achieve what ninja of such a calibre couldn't and complete, perhaps also modify, the technique and turn it into his very own signature move.

Looking up at the slowly darkening sky, silently wishing Jiraiya would finally release the next edition of the _Icha Icha_ series soon, Kakashi came to the conclusion that they must set up a camp for the overnight soon.

'We should arrive back home around noon, if we set out early in the morning and keep this pace. Hokage-sama probably awaits me and Naruto already. The boy demands answers and is not easily deceived. After all, he somehow saw through my lie. I believe Hokage-sama will have no choice but to reveal the truth to him. I'm curious though just how much he's going to tell him and if Naruto can cope with it.', the jōnin thought in concern due to the fragility of his pupil's mind, having feared this moment since the boy displayed highly disturbing behavior while he had introduced himself on the roof of the academy.

After interviewing all of his students Kakashi had finished the mission report and summoned Pakkun, one of his loyal ninken (ninja dogs), and told him to deliver it to Hiruzen as fast as he could, giving the Hokage more time to for one thing reach a decision on how much he would tell Naruto and for another thing to contact Jiraiya, the only person capable of fixing the seal if it has been damaged. Fortunately though it doesn't appear as if that was the case and Naruto showed surprisingly formidable control over the vile chakra of the Kyūbi, despite obviously being absolutely livid at this point in time.

The personal discussion he had with his blond student was truly enlightening. 'As much as Naruto has progressed in the shinobi arts he's still an emotionally scarred child at heart with a dangerous ideology, which might get him killed very quickly. He only thinks in black and white, whereas reality has a thousand shades of grey, something the boy fails to realize yet. Being a ninja is sometimes a nasty business and you can't simply refuse a mission assigned to you by the Hokage, even if it goes against your beliefs. I have done deeds for which I cannot forgive myself, as will you three.', Kakashi mused and his lone black eye reflected sadness and shame, recalling a specific S-rank mission during his ANBU days.

He and his elite squad had to sneak into a well fortified castle, guarded by six dozen highly trained samurai and kill the daimyō of a small country, a good man, who never looked down on the common people because of his status unlike most of the other daimyō's, but unfortunately he became a thorn in the flesh of his peers. Furthermore, their order also included to exterminate the man's bloodline, consequently eliminating his pregnant wife and seven-year old daughter was part of the job. A fairly easy task, Konoha's reward, three million ryō. This world is such a cruel place.

All of a sudden, his train of depressing thoughts were interrupted by Sasuke "Wow! Sensei, you never told us that your head is worth 77 million ryō!", he heard him exclaim in astonishment, stunning Naruto and Hinata.

The blonde stopped practicing, resulting in the various dents on the ball's surface to disappear and looked at his sensei in wonder "I-Incredible! Kakashi-sensei, why did you never tell us?!", he inquired, truly amazed at such an insanely high sum, whereupon Kakashi just shrugged in response.

"Well, I didn't tell you because I'm neither proud of it nor do I think it's relevant and you three shouldn't place value on it either. Many ninja see high bounties as a sign of strength and it can give you a global reputation..." At this Naruto's ears perked up. That's _exactly_ what he always wanted. His dream is to acquire wealth, fame and power, to make a name for himself, gaining everyone's respect in the process and become a legend among legends by his own strength.

Nonetheless, there was another reason why he sought strength so desperately, why he desired to be the best. To protect those precious to him. To fulfil that goal he has to get stronger than anyone else! That way he will be able to keep them safe, thus Naruto would continue to train like a maniac day in, day out. 'They all might hate me, but I couldn't care less, I'm happy because of you. You are my nakama... my _family_. I won't forgive anyone who tries to take you away from me, good reason or not. That person won't live to see another day, dattebayo.', Naruto thought and made an unspoken promise.

"... _However_, keep in mind that such a reputation comes at a price definitely not worth it, bounty hunter and others will be out for your head! Remember, we are ninja, thus should avoid unnecessary attention. Four criteria determine the amount of a bounty, individual skill, kekkei genkai, threat level and noteworthy accomplishments. Normally, the reward will only be paid if the corpse can still be clearly identified, usually in carefully hidden bounty stations throughout the elemental nations, but sometimes people are wanted because of a rare kekkei genkai, hence they have to be kept alive for... well, you know why. Once issued, a bounty can last for fifty years if the wanted person is not proven to be dead.", he finished his tedious explanation with sigh and the group continued their march.

Kakashi knows the lands around Konoha inside out and will lead them to a suitable site to pitch camp, not far from their current position. Unnoticed by everyone, Naruto grinned from ear to ear in excitement, despite the burning pain in his right arm due to the strain he had put on his chakra pathway system and feeling a bit tired, showing his slightly sharper than average canine teeth.

Someday _his_ name, _Naruto Uzumaki_, will be written in that book too, just like Kakashi-sensei's. He will gain the highest bounty ever and step into the ranks of greatness! 'Yes, I will prove my existence and make my enemies tremble before my might, I will become legendary!'

The blonde was very grateful to have been sent on this escort mission to Nami no Kuni and mulled over the events that took place. Firstly, he gained another precious person, Tsunami. Secondly, he freed the entire country by crushing Gatō and his goons like pests, bringing peace to the land and lastly, this mission taught him various important lessons about life and shaped his beliefs.

Seeing Inari crying and sulking all day, accepting his _fate_ and having given up all hope, not lifting a single finger to help his grandfather and mother, who risked their lives to bring forth a better future not just for him, but everyone else as well made him want to puke. That was weakness and in his opinion weakness is a sin. Not physical weakness, mental. He really hated cowards like that, people who give themselves up to fate and despised such _trash_, though Inari has changed and has chosen him as a role model along with Kaiza.

Besides, having confronted Gatō and verifying that he wasn't in the least bit sorry for what he had done showed him that there are some people in this world who are better off dead. The rotten deserve to die and he will kill all of them! You can't live in this world without humanity and justice! They were born only to bring misfortune upon the world and are nothing more than animals in human clothing. Those _beasts_ must perish for the sake of the innocent people in this world for only their deaths can truly bring safety and happiness to others. That is Yami no Seigi (Dark Justice), to rid the world from evil without showing mercy since if the tables were turned these _monsters_ wouldn't show you either, no forgiveness for the crimes they have committed.

All in all, this mission made it obvious to him that there is one certainty in life, if you have power, you can change something. Strength is the _only_ thing that matters in this world, a world, in which the strong devour the weak. Everyone who believes in something else is just delusional. 'I must continue... continue training until I become the best!' Naruto was so engrossed in thought that he didn't notice with his additional sense that Hinata, his adopted little sister, was... sulking.

The lavender eyed girl glanced back at Naruto 'Both of them are getting stronger each day. I... I want to w-walk beside them as their e-equal, not being saved like a few days ago, not be a b-burden. I must get stronger too, so they won't need to save me again. If I can't do that, then... then I don't d-deserve to be on the same team as them. A chain is only a-as strong as its w-weakest link...', she stopped thinking any further, taking in Naruto's expression, especially the look in his eyes, reflecting pure unwavering determination, the desire to improve himself, to reach new heights, his will to never give up.

It made the corner of her lips curl up into a small smile and instantly forget such depressing thoughts. She steeled her resolve 'Naruto… You changed me, I'm no longer the person I was once, thank you. I'm going to get stronger, _much_ stronger and walk beside you, you will see...' Hinata averted her gaze to her raven-haired teammate, remembering Kakashi's lecture that she was part of a team, a lesson Hinata took to heart. '...and you too Sasuke.'

Staring at his admittedly handsome face caused her cheeks to flush, being reminded that he saw her naked. The blush slowly began to spread across her entire face the longer she looked at him, turning her red as a tomato, recalling how he came to her rescue, the moment he held her close when Naruto unleashed that devastating wind jutsu, pressing her body _tightly_ against his and how he supported her once the ice dome crumbled. She could hear her heartbeat thundering in her ears.

Back then, her vision was blurry and she was semi-conscious, but Hinata remembered clearly the feeling of his chest against her back, how good his warmth felt in the cold and how his hot breath caused the hair on the back of her neck to stand up. Ever since that happened the girl tried to avoid him or thinking about him, though the more Hinata tried to forget those memories the worse it became to face him, it was frustrating.

Sasuke could feel someone's eyes resting on him. His head snapped up and he looked to his left, meeting Hinata's lavender-white orbs, who immediately fixed the ground and began to... tap her index fingers together? He blinked. It has been ages since he saw her doing that.

The raven-haired boy didn't knew why he was remembering this now of all times, but like every single night that followed the particular _incident_ his mind's eye projected her naked form again, how she danced and shone in the moonlight, as if it had happened just recently. Additionally, he recalled the feeling of hugging her and the brief moment of inhaling her lovely scent before the raging winds blew it away. It has been so long since he felt someone's warmth. That's why he subconsciously held her tighter than it was necessary and he... liked it... who was he kidding he loved it, the feeling of comfort.

Suddenly, he began to feel weird again. A completely uncharacteristic pink tint formed on his cheeks and his heart was beating faster. Sasuke shook his head violently 'What the hell is happening to me? This has never happened before in my life. Focus dammit!' The young boy guessed he might be hitting puberty full force. Indeed, he was willing to admit that he thought Hinata was attractive to him. He couldn't deceive himself after all. However, Sasuke would _not_ allow her or any other girl to distract him from his goal to kill his _brother_, so he resumed reading this really interesting piece of literature.

Zabuza, Gōzu and Meizu, the men Kakashi hyped up so much were apparently just tadpoles in an ocean full of sharks! Surprisingly, the biggest predator of them all was someone wholly unexpectedly, Hiruzen Sarutobi aka _Saru (Monkey), Shinobi no Kami_ or_ Purofessā_ with an astronomical bounty of 230 million ryō on his head. His respect towards this inconspicuous and seemingly feeble old man rose significantly due to all of his achievements.

The two chūnin Sasuke killed, despite being pretty famous, were worth just lousy 650.000 ryō each. Even Zabuza's weapon, the Kubikiribōchō, was several times more worth than both of them combined. Kiri, believe it or not, is willing to pay 30 million ryō for the sword and for the _Demon of the Hidden Mist_ himself impressive 44 million ryō. He continued to flick through the pages of the Bingo Book for some time, studying it carefully with the aid of his dōjutsu until he came face to face with a demon of his past, causing him and subsequently the others to halt. His **_Sharingan_** started to spin wildly, his eyes flaring with rage. The boy clenched his teeth in anger and clutched the book tightly while viewing deep buried memories in his mind's eye.

Kakashi turned around and narrowed his lone eye at him, already suspecting what he must have stumbled upon 'I didn't expect him to react so strongly just by looking at a picture. To imagine what could happen if we run into _him_ for real. He probably would abandon all reason for madness and charge him head on, throwing his life away. Guess I will have a word with him later on.'

Hinata as well as Naruto watched him in worry. The blonde sensed the intense waves of the hate, anger and... most predominately blood lust radiating from his friend, who over the course of time became like a brother to him, as if experiencing his emotions himself. Sasuke filled the air with the heavy pressure of killing intent, making Hinata take a few steps backwards "Sasuke-kun, w-what's wrong?... You can tell us.", she asked quietly, in a soothing voice, taken aback by his outburst, hoping to calm her enraged teammate, who slammed the book shut and replied "Nothing" barely above a whisper.

"I don't buy that, teme.", Naruto retorted loudly.

**"I said nothing!"**, Sasuke snapped back at him and Hinata moved away from him, closer to Kakashi.

"Naruto! Let him be. Sasuke, calm yourself, _now_!", the team leader demanded with a piercing glare, knowing Naruto wasn't suited to handle Sasuke, because he never experienced the pain of losing someone precious. Their pain was similar, yet different at the same time. Besides, the blonde is sometimes very harsh as he has shown when he talked to Inari. This matter needed tact, something Naruto doesn't possess.

Kakashi's intense gaze made Sasuke comply. He closed his eyes, exhaled _deeply_, deactivated his **_Sharingan_** and opened his eyes again to see his sensei walking up to him, who took the book out of his hand and continued "We are going to leave the road now. Behind that rock formation in front of us is a clearing where we will pitch camp."

All genin nodded and knew what to do. Hinata used her **_Byakugan_** to scout the entire area and once she confirmed the destined terrain was safe Naruto together with Kakashi proceeded to lay out complex and deadly traps, turning the surrounding area into a kill zone, whereas Hinata and Sasuke prepared the tents and a campfire. Naruto showed so much talent in fūinjutsu that he was able to help his sensei in setting up ANBU level seal based traps.

ANBU members are required to attain decent skills in this difficult art and many candidates drop out simply because they can't grasp the complicated concepts of developing, applying, manipulating or even neutralizing a seal on their own, staying jōnin for the rest of their shinobi careers. Naruto on the other hand absorbed this knowledge from his sensei like a sponge. He was nowhere near Kakashi's level though, who learned most of what he knew about fūinjutsu from Minato, but already close to that of an actual Konoha ANBU member. However, according to Hiruzen's plan, Jiraiya is going to teach Naruto so much more than Kakashi ever could.

* * *

The rest of the evening passed uneventfully. Like every time when the team spent the night out in the open since the mission began, sitting around a campfire and enjoying Hinata's delicious cooking, Kakashi told his genin an exciting story about a famous ninja, much to the youth's delight, dispersing the bad mood from before. This time he narrated the story of _Shakuton no Pakura (Pakura of the Scorch Release)_, Sunagakure's heroine, capturing particularly Hinata's attention for one particular reason.

The academy basically just covered the exploits of the four Hokage's, the _Densetsu no Sannin_ and a few selected enemies of them in regards to noteworthy shinobi, thus Tsunade Senju was technically the only famous kunoichi known to the girls at the academy, making them somewhat feel left out and the list of suitable role models, well, short.

Once he finished the tale, everyone except for Kakashi himself went inside their respective tents to rest. Naruto and Hinata slept soundly. However, Sasuke in turn restless, rolling around, sweating and panting. Unlike the nights before he wasn't dreaming about Hinata, no, he was having an all to familiar nightmare.

_"Father!"_

_"Mother!"_

_"Why... did you..."_

_"It was to measure my capacity."_

_"I'm scared!"_

_"Don't kill me!"_

_There is no value in killing the likes of you, my foolish brother. If you want to kill me, curse me, hate me and live a long and unsightly life! Run away, run away and cling to your pitiful life! And someday, when you have the same eyes as me... come before me!_

His eyes shot open at the sight of his brother's malicious **_Mangekyō Sharingan_** in his mind's eye and his chest rose and fell rapidly, but he didn't scream. Sasuke stopped screaming and sobbing a very long time ago while having this dream that haunted him, constantly reminding him of his goal. He focused on calming his rapid heartbeat with slow and deep breaths. The air inside his tent was so stuffy, almost unbearable, he had to go out and get some fresh air. Taking his sword and strapping it onto his back he went outside.

The cool air, the sight of the clear sky filled with stars and the tranquil of the night, occasionally disturbed by the sounds of some nocturnal animals or insects worked wonders to calm Sasuke, who sat on top of a large boulder on a grassy plain since about half an hour, a good distance away from the camp, observing the beginnings of a thunderstorm on the distant horizon, nothing unfamiliar during this season of the year in Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire).

_In order to become like me, to obtain the same eyes... you must kill your closest friend._

"My closest friend...", he muttered quietly and sighed. The only ones he would consider to be his _friends_ are Naruto and Hinata, though, he believed he was actually closer to Naruto, seeing him as a... brother of sorts, like the brother Itachi once used to be without that annoying habit of poking his forehead.

Suddenly, his eyes widened and he swiftly drew his tantō with his right hand, turned and slashed diagonally at a figure behind him, who jumped backwards. Sasuke quickly stood up, slipping into a defensive kenjutsu stance. Two blood-red orbs stared into a single black one, tomoe spinning threateningly. The darkness of the night only added to the natural malice these eyes held.

"Your senses are as sharp as always. Mind if I keep you company?", he heard somebody resembling Kakashi say and frowned at this person.

"Hn... Don't move.", Sasuke responded, eyeing him suspiciously.

The boy used his **_Sharingan_** to mentally overlap an image of his sensei with the man in front of him, comparing every single detail as best as he could in the darkness, additionally trying to spot any discrepancies with the environment and studied the flow of his chakra, it was regular. Finally convinced that this man wasn't disguised in a **_Henge_**, but having learnt from his sensei not to rely too much on his dōjutsu he asked "When does a ninja strike?"

"A ninja waits until the time is right. When the enemy lowers his guard and his weapons lay forgotten in the stillness of the night. That is the time for a ninja to strike."

Correct code word and convincing act, no hesitation in the reply, matching Kakashi's voice perfectly. However, just to be sure, Sasuke had another question in store, something only a true member of team seven could know about him.

"What is my dream for the future?"

"No, you don't have a _dream_, but an _ambition_. You want to resurrect your clan and kill a certain man.", Kakashi spoke and pondered 'Excellent Sasuke, I have taught you well, I'm glad you took my lessons to heart or else I would be extremely disappointed, because I hate to waste my time.'

Only now Sasuke dropped his guard. Jumping onto the flat surface of the rock his sensei sat down and gestured him to do the same. Sheathing his blade he did so and both stared at the horizon for a while, neither saying a word, watching the thunderstorm, every now and them, seeing a lightning bolt strike the ground as well as listened to the booming thunder such an electrical discharge causes.

Kakashi was the first to break the silence "Sasuke, I want to talk to you about your ambition... more precisely your quest for revenge."

"What about it, sensei? If you intend to convince me not to pursue _him_ stop wasting your time and leave me _alone_.", his pupil virtually snarled at him, clutching his pants tightly and clenching his teeth in fury, trying to keep his voice down due to his immense respect for Kakashi.

"Nah, won't do that, you are too stubborn, so it's doomed to fail anyway...", at this Sasuke stared at him honestly surprised, raising an eyebrow, apparently not having expected such an answer. He anticipated _Those who seek revenge will only end up hurting themselves even more_ or something along these lines, bullshit like that.

"You see, if I were in your shoes, I wouldn't abandon revenge either, so how can I expect that from you...", Kakashi stopped and turned to face his stunned pupil, who listened intently.

"... Sasuke, I remember the only family I knew, my father, very well, despite being just five years old at that time. He was a great dad and I was a happy child, but you already know that he committed suicide after even the ninja he saved blamed him for the failure of the mission and left me alone. His death tore a huge hole in my heart. My grief and rage accumulated, causing me to push everyone away, let no one close and to live strictly according to the shinobi rules as to not fall into disgrace like my father, to redeem the surname Hatake, however, as much as I tried not to, I grew attached to my teammates and felt good in their presence, yet I never showed them my true feelings, only a facade of indifference, living in denial.

Obito's words helped me come to terms with myself, helped me realize that I care about them. Sadly though, I recognized my mistakes too late and Obito paid the price. Had I aided him from the start things might have turned out differently. When the boulders crushed him right behind me I became sad and furious again, except this time, I channeled that hate into my will to protect Rin and fought the Iwa shinobi with everything I had and killed as many as possible in order to give Rin more time to escape until I passed out from exhaustion. Luckily, sensei arrived just in time to save the day, rescuing me and her.

The point I am trying to make is that it's normal to feel pain if your precious people are robbed of your life, it's only human to feel the rage, but instead of using it to hurt those close to you I say, control it, harness it, use it as a tool to get stronger, let it not cloud your judgement and consume you, don't repeat my mistakes for only other people can ever fill that void in your heart, can ever make you genuinely smile, don't become trash like I once was...", he grabbed the gaping Sasuke by his shoulders and met his eyes, his face, at least the small visible part, stern and his tone serious.

"As for brother, there _will_ be a time and place to take your revenge... but this moment is certainly not now, _you aren't ready yet_. If you confront him now, _you will die_, don't pursue him now and throw your life away..." this made Sasuke scowl at him "... He was stronger than me and Yūgao combined when he was thirteen and I shudder at the thought of what kind of monstrous strength he has gained by now..." his student looked now outright mad, feeling his self-control slipping away and wanted to shout something, though, before he could, Kakashi cut him off "... _Listen_, I strongly believe that if anyone in this world can defeat him, it's you, not me, not Hinata, not even Naruto, _only __you_."

His voice softened and he eye-smiled "Sasuke, you have been born with a natural talent far beyond my own and I'm more than willing to help you surpass me and I'm sure Yūgao, Naruto and Hinata are as well. I'm going to teach you _everything_ I know. You are not alone. We all _care_ about you, so don't make us worry and think about what I said.", Kakashi finished, let go of his shoulders and left Sasuke wordlessly to his own devices, giving his pupil a wave of his right hand with his back turned while walking away, hoping he got through that thick skull of Sasuke, whose mouth formed a thin line.

What followed was a deafeningly silence during which the raven-haired boy stood up and looked up at the sky with an unreadable expression plastered on his face, loosing track of time, contemplating Kakashi's words. Eventually, Itachi's words rang in his ears again.

_In order to become like me, to obtain the same eyes... you must kill your closest friend._

___to become like me__, to obtain the same eyes_

_to become like me_

_like me_

He balled his hands into fists, gritted his teeth and yelled "**No!** I won't become like _you_, I sure as hell won't become trash! I have listened to you long enough, trying to copy you. Well, no more! It's time I finally begin to carry my life in my own hands. Cling to _your_ pitiful life and run away, _brother_, because my nakama are going to make me stronger than you can imagine. The day will come when I start hunting you down, when I'm ready, until that instant, live in fear."

Sasuke saw a flash in the corner of his eye, activated his fully matured **_Sharingan_** and turned his head into the direction it originated from, just in time, to hear the thunder and see another lightning bolt, unable to predict its path 'So incredibly fast. I wish I could be as quick as lightning, then Itachi wouldn't be able to follow my movements with his **_Sharingan_**. That would make things way easier, wait...' he recalled a story Kakashi had told them. Namely the one of the Yondaime Raikage A, specifically the part about that man's signature technique, the **_Raiton no Yoroi (Lightning Style Armour)_**, which turned this ponderous mountain of a man into a worthy opponent against the Yondaime Hokage in terms of speed back in the days.

'... _maybe_ I actually could, of course not like _real_ lightning, but as close as someone can possibly get. If this guy can use his lightning affinity to make himself faster, so why shouldnt I be able to do the same? Sorry Naruto, but the title _Fastest Man in the World_ is going to be mine. I will not live my life as your second. Once we return I will ask Kakashi-sensei for help.', he finished his train of thoughts and grinned widely at the prospect of obtaining an advantage over his brother. To think he was at first disappointed that fire wasn't his main affinity as it was to the majority of his clan, how childish.

According to his sensei, someone needs humongous chakra reserves to maintain this jutsu, rivaling that of a Bijū, one of those nine chakra creatures he read about and it was improbable that Sasuke would ever have access to such a supply, despite being comparatively blessed with large reserves granted by his lineage and intense stamina training. However, the boy wasn't interested in the protective layer, which consumed as well as wasted most of the chakra since it covered the whole body all the time, just the enhanced speed and reflexes, creating his own version of the technique, not an inferior, but a better one. For instance he might be able to release a large amount of lightning chakra in a short burst, in every direction to electrocute incoming adversaries as a form of defense or simply use a lighting chakra infused sword to block attacks.

While Sasuke was most eager to invent this jutsu quickly he was too much concerned about his health to actually try it on his own since he has mastered only the basics of his lightning chakra nature and experimenting with one's nervous system is dangerous! After all, he didn't want to accidentally fry his brain or shock his heart. Nothing better to do, Sasuke went back to his tent to catch up on some sleep, all the while, a huge smile on his face.

* * *

The mighty wall surrounding Konoha came into view as team seven slowly approached the village's east gate in a line formation. Kakashi outside left, next to him Naruto, Hinata and Sasuke, in that order. The girl was glad to finally be home again. She really missed her family, especially her father and Hanabi, who had welcomed her new attitude and seemingly acknowledged her now.

Sadly though, Neji on the other hand seemed angrier than he has ever been before in his life. Even if the cold expression on his face never betrayed it, Hinata knew just by looking into his eyes that he hated her from the bottom of his heart. She truly wished to one day have a similar relationship with Neji as she has with Naruto, because he was her cousin, a family member. Hinata doesn't distinguish between branch and main house and treats every Hyūga equally, _never_ using the cursed seal.

Naruto, in contrast to Hinata, felt the exact opposite, staring in pure contempt at the wall of his _prison_ and thought 'Home sweet hell.' To him, this wall didn't convey a sense of safety, no, more of being locked up. The boy didn't care much about Konoha anymore since he caught a glimpse of what the world outside had to offer. The time he spent in Nami no Kuni was great after he freed the people. They see him as a true hero.

The blonde tried to find a positive aspect though and indeed something came to his mind, making the warmth in his eyes return... ramen, not just any ramen, Ichiraku ramen, the food of the gods, rivaled only by Hinata's cooking. He put his hands behind the back of his head and chuckled.

"I'm so hungry, I could eat a vegetable! I'm going to head right for Ichiraku's! Will you guys accompany me? I'm sure Ayame-neechan certainly wouldn't mind, right Kakashi-sensei?", he inquired humorously, making Hinata giggle and a surprisingly cheerful Sasuke for once chuckle instead of grunt. His big sis developed a crush on his sensei the first moment they met, shortly after team seven formed and seeing her attempts at seducing him are funny to watch. Yea, nothing could possible ruin this day if even the teme was in a good mood.

"I'm sorry to ruin your dinner plans, Naruto. But you must come with me to Hokage-sama, so don't run off, okay. Hinata and Sasuke are free to go once we step through the gate.", Kakashi stated seriously.

Naruto pouted childishly, crossed his arms in front of his chest and grumbled something incoherently. How could he forget that? There was still one question he demanded an answer to... but seriously, couldn't that wait until _after_ he ate his ramen. 'Kakashi-sensei is probably just too shy and wants to avoid Ayame-neechan, dattebayo.', he thought and nodded to himself.

* * *

Hiruzen sat behind his desk, that was crammed with paper work. His hat and pipe laid on it as well. He was in a foul mood indeed and wore a grim expression on his face. Also, his last loyal student, Jiraiya, self-proclaimed super-pervert and author of the famous _Icha Icha_ series, leaned against the wall to his right with his arms crossed, looking stern.

As soon as the old Kage had received Kakashi's mission report he immediately sent out a messenger toad, which Jiraiya left him in case of an emergency, to deliver him a note, ordering him to abort whatever he was doing, due to a matter of _utmost importance_ and come back to Konoha as fast as he could. The Kyūbi is no issue to be taken lightly! When Jiraiya finally arrived, through one of the windows as usual, making the hidden ANBU jump at the sudden appearance of an unexpected intruder, he activated the privacy seals and ordered his bodyguards to leave the office.

The Hokage rubbed his temples and groaned, feeling a headache forming. Bad news just kept coming! First, a C-rank escort mission involving team seven turned A-rank, which Kakashi continued at the insistence of a _genin_, despite having only limited intel and commanding a rookie team. That was irresponsible and Kakashi must take responsibility for his decisions like every squad leader.

However, he's going let him go off easy this time since his team not only succeeded, but additionally retrieved one of the seven legendary blades and the corpses of the two mist-nin might reveal some of Kiri's secrets. As punishment, Hiruzen will just demote him to tokubetsu jōnin, thus he would still be allowed to lead his team. If one of the genin in his care would have been killed he would have _personally_ ripped out his _**Sharingan**_, confiscated his summoning contract and thrown him out of the ninja ranks after ordering a Hyūga to destroy his chakra network.

Second, a new hidden village, Otogakure, emerged literally out of nowhere in Ta no Kuni (Land of Rice Fields), recently renamed into Oto no Kuni (Land of Sound), forcing him to dispatch more troops to the northern border, consequently thinning Konoha's lines of defense on other important locations. This will make the task of guarding the entire village during the upcoming chūnin exams harder as well.

Lastly, _Akatsuki_, a group of _S-rank_ missing-nin, which Orochimaru once belonged to is on the move, recruiting members and collecting high bounties for an unknown purpose. Taking down a single S-rank level shinobi is a tough job, even for a platoon of seasoned ANBU, but a group working together poses a serious threat he couldn't ignore.

Because of that Itachi infiltrated the mysterious organization, protecting the village from within this group and requested in turn that he would protect Sasuke from Danzō. Only his two advisors, Homura and Koharu, Danzō and he himself knew about this deal and the only other person he's going to let in on the secret will be his successor, not even Jiraiya.

"So... why did I have to drop everything and come back anyway? A lot of farmers and rangers are going to be mad at me for riding Bunta five hours straight, including the grumpy Boss Toad himself, if this isn't important. What do you need me for, sensei?", Jiraiya inquired. Honestly, he wasn't really complaining, since this gave him an opportunity to do some research at the local hot springs and enjoy the beauty of nature his home had to offer. He really hoped to catch a glimpse of Orochimaru's ex apprentice again, Anko Mitarashi, like during his last short visit about eight months ago. That was truly a sight to behold!

"Naruto", Hiruzen replied, causing Jiraiya to close his eyes and think.

That name rang a bell. '... Oh of course, Minato's son.' Opening them again he turned his gaze onto Minato's picture on the opposite wall right next to that of his sensei, his prized student, whom Jiraiya believed to be the one he searched for, the _Yogen no Ko (Child of the Prophecy)_. The blonde was a shinobi genius like no other and like a son to him. Jiraiya cursed himself for not being in Konoha on this fateful night and taking his place as a sacrifice for the Shinigami (Death God).

During the second shinobi world war he thought to have found the destined child in the war-torn lands surrounding Amegakure, ruled by _Hanzō of the Salamander_ till the present day as far as he knew. The boy's name was Nagato, who possessed the mystical _**Rinnegan**_, the dōjutsu of _Rikudō Sennin_, thought to be nothing more than a fairy tale. Jiraiya concluded the redhead was either the sage reincarnated or a manifestation of his thoughts and feelings, therefore he decided to train him for three whole years in the shinobi arts along with his two companions, Yahiko and Konan, so the three orphans could fend for themselves.

However, at some point in time, he lost track of them and heard rumors of their deaths, such a shame. He grew quite fond of them. Nagato's view about peace even inspired him to write his first book, whose main character, years later, impressed Minato so much that he decided to name his son after him, which Kushina agreed to of course, and he sincerely wished Naruto would grow up to be just like the protagonist in this story, pointing out that the character resembles Jiraiya's very closely, making him Naruto's godfather... a job he wasn't suited for.

He was a bad role model, one of the worst, didn't know how and neither had the time nor the will to raise a child, because he had to chase after Orochimaru, maintain his spy network and do his _research_. Besides, his sensei was looking out for him. What could possibly go wrong if the _Shinobi no Kami_ was watching over him? Sooner or later, according to Hiruzen's plan, he will help the boy control the Kyūbi's power and instruct him in fūinjutsu, making him hopefully able to revive Minato's signature technique, the _**Hiraishin no Jutsu **__**(Flying Thunder God Technique)**_ and follow in his father's footsteps.

"What about him? You told me he was faring well, being secretly the best student in his graduation class and you planned to assign Kakashi as his sensei. Is he having trouble in love? Does he need my manly advice?...", he asked while smirking and pointed his left thumb at his chest at the last part, but was promptly cut off by Hiruzen.

"The Kyūbi... I fear the seal might have been damaged during his first mission outside.", he said darkly.

That comment caused Jiraiya to instantly drop his goofy nature and become deadly serious as if war was approaching, worried about Naruto's well-being as well as the fox breaking free. "What happened?"

"Take a look at this, Kakashi's report, read it for yourself.", the Hokage replied and held out the document. Jiraiya walked up to him, took it and quickly skimmed through while scratching his chin with his free hand.

It reads like a war report and line by line the _Toad Sage's_ eyebrows rose a bit further. 'C-rank... Hyūga... Uchiha... escort bridge builder... Nami no Kuni... spotting an ambush... Demon brothers... Gatō the shipping magnate... arguing... Zabuza Momochi... **_Hyōton (Ice Style)_**... Kyūbi's chakra_... _Naruto transformed_... _Massacre... Dark Justice?!'

He stared at the piece of paper in bewilderment, mulling its content over 'Kakashi, I must admit you trained your genin well. I'm really impressed by their level of skill. Nevertheless, it's a miracle everyone survived and recovered fully under such dire circumstances. Furthermore, Naruto was able to control that power to a certain degree without going berserk, most impressive indeed, proving strong willpower and giving me an excellent basis to work on. That will make things much easier. Yet, his _Dark Justice_ attitude worries me greatly.'

Finished, Jiraiya nodded, laid the document on the desk and spoke "I see, guess this throws your plan into disarray, sensei. What now?"

"I will tell him _everything_.", Hiruzen replied bluntly.

...

"Sensei, is that really a wise move? He obviously needs to mature a lot more before he can handle that. The news of him being a jinchūriki alone will already have a big impact on him.", the sage voiced his reservation.

Hiruzen folded his hands in front of chin and retorted "Now that I look back, I should have told him at least about the Kyūbi the moment he received his headband. I was reluctant to send Naruto on a mission outside so early in his career due to his _issues_, but I trusted Kakashi's judgement, who demanded a higher ranked mission in the first place. The boy made splendid progress. He _slowly_ opened up to others, gained friends he holds dear as well as a social life, just like Kushina back in the days. Bit by bit, Naruto formed a bond with the village and grew as a person.

However, this mission messed him up. Kakashi should have knocked him out, but he decided not to. We can't change the past. The damage has been done and the only right thing to do now is to put the cards on the table, show him that he can trust us. Lying would only make it worse. I fear what might happen if he comes to hate Konoha and what I would be forced to do should he ever show signs of going against the village.", he sighed and added

'Please Naruto, you are like a son to me, please don't become like Orochimaru. Choose the right path. I know the Hi no Ishi (Will of Fire) is within you.' in an afterthought. In case the boy might go against the village he will order Jiraiya to apply a customized version of the Hyūga cursed seal onto Naruto, reacting only to Hiruzen's, Jiraiya's, Kakashi's and Tenzō's chakra signature.

Time flew by. Both debated for a while and exchanged arguments until someone knocked on the door. Hiruzen deactivated the privacy seals and ordered the person to enter. Opening the door Kakashi stepped into the room first, acknowledging his superiors with a nod, followed by his blond pupil, who offered the Hokage a smile, trying to disperse the somewhat tense atmosphere in the room, which Hiruzen returned, and spared Jiraiya a brief curious glance.

Kakashi closed the door and Hiruzen activated the seals again, causing the walls to flash blue for a split second, impossible to see with the untrained eye. This aroused Naruto's curiosity, because the boy never noticed hidden seals in the room before and the duo moved into the middle of the room.

As they walked Jiraiya took in Naruto's appearance for the first time and nostalgia overcame him 'He looks like a young Minato, except for his slightly rounder eyes and face and of course the whisker marks... Hehe nice strategy, _the suit_. A lot of women like that, makes you look successful and self-confident, but very few can pull it off as good as you do.'

"I have been expecting you two. Naruto, the man standing to my right is Jiraiya..."

"Wow! _Jiraiya of the Sannin_, the _Toad Sage_?!", the boy yelled out in astonishment, interrupting his Jiji. He could somehow tell this guy was _really_ strong, like Jiji, way stronger than Kakashi and him when he entered the office and had the hunch that what he felt was just the tip of the iceberg.

"Aww sensei, I wanted to introduce myself with style.", the sage whined at the missed opportunity to show off his new dance.

"Not now Jiraiya. First things first. Naruto, I know it sounds strange, but I ask you to show us your bare stomach and pull out your chakra, use a ram seal to draw it out easier.", Hiruzen demanded.

The boy agreed. That was indeed an odd request, nevertheless he proceeded to strip to his waist, trusting his Jiji and handed his garments to Kakashi.

'Oh my god?! Mothers, lock up your daughters, Naruto is topless. Hehe The ladies must be all over you, lucky boy.', Jiraiya tried to suppress a perverted smile as well as a snicker. The boy's body was unexpectedly the epitome of athletically built, despite his young age, good genes he guessed.

Naruto didn't like the _weird_ vibe that radiated from the tall man at the sight of his bare chest. He seemed a little too _excited_, though he chose not to address this, instead, the boy closed his eyes shut and clasped his hands together, forming a ram seal, trying to pull a good portion of his chakra, causing a blue hue to surround his figure. Additionally, black lines appeared seemingly out of nowhere on his stomach, the Hakke no Fūin Shiki (Eight Trigrams Seal).

'What incredibly powerful chakra!', Kakashi eyed his sensei's son analytically and Hiruzen as well as Jiraiya shared the same thought. Sure, he has felt Naruto expel such an amount a few times before, but what never failed to amaze him wasn't the quantity, about twelve times his own, but the _quality_. Chakra is composed of two parts, yin and yang, one's mental and physical energies. Both can be increased through different methods, thus make the generated chakra more potent, subsequently maximize the power of a jutsu. Naruto trains his body along with his mind extensively and it pays.

Said boy opened his eyes and felt the urge to look down at his belly. He did so and frowned. "What the hell is this? It looks like two storage seals of the same kind form a very strange big one. Why the opening between them if its supposed to store something?"

The three adults stared dumbfounded at the blonde. 'He can tell the purpose of the seal with just a single glance?!', they thought in unison.

Hiruzen was the first to regain his bearings and asked incredulously "Cough Naruto, how can you tell its function?"

"Isn't it obvious?", the boy replied in a matter of fact tone.

"... No, it's not. Please let Jiraiya take a look at it.", the Hokage turned to the sage and nodded, whereupon Jiraiya approached the boy, knelt down and analyzed the seal for the first time, marveling at one of the most complex seals ever created.

'Hm Just like the kid had said. Two of Uzu's four symbols seals shape the eight trigrams seal and leave an opening. It's set up so a tiny amount of the Kyūbi's chakra slips out from the space between the two seals and slowly merges with Naruto's own. Though, the gap is much wider than I expected, but nothing to worry about since it's within an acceptable range.', he turned his head, smiled, gave Hiruzen a thumbs up, straightened himself and went to the Hokage's side.

Naruto frowned, highly displeased at being left in the dark and growled "Can someone please tell me what the fuck is going on?!"

"Watch your language, Naruto!", Kakashi scolded, eyeing his student disapprovingly and resisting the urge to hit him in the head. After all, they were in the presence of the Hokage, who didn't seem to mind this small outburst at all. The boy along with Jiraiya, Tsunade and to an extend Danzō, his old friend, are the only ones who could get away with cursing in his presence or not addressing him properly.

Hiruzen raised a hand "It's alright, Kakashi. Naruto, you can put your clothes back on..."

The blonde took his clothes from Kakashi and complied. Afterwards Hiruzen continued in a deadly serious tone "... What I'm going to tell you now, Naruto, will _not_ leave this room, do you understand?" Hiruzen looked Naruto straight in the eyes and the boy nodded.

"Alright, I'm not going to lie to you, although this may be difficult for you to hear, it's the truth. The seal on your stomach is called the _Hakke no Fūin Shiki_. You are right about its purpose. The seal indeed does contain something... the creature that attacked the village twelve years ago, the _Kyūbi no Yōko_, you are its jinchūriki..."

Naruto was too stunned to move. Shock and confusion written all over his face 'W-What?!' Realization dawned on him. It all made sense now. He was born on the same day the beast attacked more than twelve years ago, called names like _demon spawn_, had whisker marks and the villagers wouldn't let him go near the festival to celebrate the Yondaime Hokage's victory. The answer to why they despised him so much was right in front of his nose all along! How could he have been so blind? The boy looked at his shaking hands with wide eyes.

Seeing this, Hiruzen hurriedly tried to reassure the boy. His voice softened, changing into his grandfatherly tone "Naruto, understand, you are its jinchūriki, not the Bijū itself, you are Naruto Uzumaki."

Naruto has a solid understanding of fūinjutsu. That seal on his stomach is a _storage_ seal and he tapped into the fox's chakra once, which appears to be infused with its will and he fought with the beast for dominance, so there was simply no way he was the fox. Furthermore, Naruto even heard it speak to him, the most obvious evidence that there was another being inside of him.

Also, at first, he didn't feel a big difference, only the physical changes, but the longer he used that vile hate-filled chakra the more difficult it became to keep a clear mind. The beast gained _slowly but surely_ gaining the upper hand in their struggle, no matter how much he tried to completely eradicate its will. Had he stayed in that transformed condition for an hour or two he would have lost control, attacking everyone in sight, friend and foe, that he was sure of.

"I know _exactly_ who I am, Jiji. It's like sealing something into a scroll. We are two separate entities... B-But how, why?"

The other occupants in the room were glad he took the news with such maturity. That went way easier than they thought, but the biggest shock was about to come. The Hokage reached down, opened a drawer and took out two pictures as well as a wooden box. "Come Naruto, I have something to show you..."

The blonde complied, walked up to the desk and his Jiji handed him the first image. The picture showed two stunningly beautiful women. One had long waist-length crimson hair with strands that framed both sides of her face, fair skin and violet eyes. She wore a high-collared, sleeveless white blouse under a long green dress, a dark blue bracelet on her left wrist and lavender shinobi sandals. The redhead stood next to a fair-skinned women with long black hair, whose strands framed her face and black eyes. She wore a brown blouse, a dark purple skirt and blue shinobi sandals. Both smiled and the former had her right arm slung over the other's shoulder, holding her close, making a victory sign and grinned widely.

"... The woman in the brown blouse is Mikoto Uchiha, Sasuke's mother and next to her stands your mother, Kushina Uzumaki."

Naruto was speechless, gazing at the photo intently. His eyes watered slightly and he smiled in joy. This image was now his treasure. 'M-My mother... I finally know her name, how she looked like. Wait...' He raised his head and scowled.

"Jiji, if my mom knew Sasuke's mother... Mikoto, apparently so well, then why didn't she take care of me after that monster killed my mom?!", the blonde snapped angrily, placing the image carefully down on the table, making Jiraiya a bit nervous since he was the boy's godfather. Naruto received an answer to one question, only to have more in the end. He was pissed!

Hiruzen exhaled _deeply_, this is going to take some time. "...Naruto, in order for you to _truly_ understand everything you must know of your origins and _do not_ interrupt me, just listen. I will answer all questions you might have once I'm finished. Your mother wasn't born in Konoha, but in Uzushiogakure, located in the nowadays deserted Land of Whirlpools, an island between Mizu no Kuni (Land of Water) and Hi no Kuni (Land of Fire), into the Uzumaki _clan_..." at this Naruto's eyes became as wide as saucers. He was a member of a clan? Are there others? Why has he never heard of his clan before? More questions!

"... The Uzumaki shared red hair as a common trait and were known for their incredible longevity and life force, highly respected, but more importantly, feared for their skill in the art of fūinjutsu. They were distant blood relatives to the Senju and both clans had very strong ties with each other, resulting in an alliance between Konoha and Uzushiogakure as well as the clans themselves. The Uzumaki clan's crest became even part of our uniforms as a sign of friendship and goodwill.

Furthermore, Mito Uzumaki, daughter of the clan head, married the Shodaime Hokage, Hashirama Senju, to further strengthen that bond. When the Shodaime fought against Madara Uchiha he eventually gained the upper hand and took control of his _pet_, the Kyūbi. Mito proceeded to seal it into her body, becoming its first jinchūriki..." That was unexpected and caused Naruto to gape in bewilderment. His clan is awesome! However, why is his Jiji talking about his clan as if they are gone? He was standing right in front of him, the living proof that the clan still loves on!

"... Your mother was born with special chakra and since Mito was on her deathbed Kushina had been chosen to become the second jinchūriki..." the blonde clenched his teeth and growled in fury, nevertheless he suppressed his rage as best as he could and kept his mouth shut because of one reason. He longed for the truth, so he would listen and ask questions later. Causing a scene now would be counterproductive.

"... Therefore she was brought to Konoha, but didn't knew why. Back then, only I and the three elders knew the truth. Some time later Iwa, Kumo and Kiri formed an alliance against their common enemy and launched a joint attack on the Land of Whirlpools to exterminate the Uzumaki clan out of fear for their power and they succeeded.

The handful of remnants fled. However, as far as I know, all of them have been persecuted and killed, making Kushina the sole survivor. At first, she struggled to adapt, but as time went by, Kushina grew to be an extraordinary kunoichi, gained few, yet fiercely loyal friends like Mikoto and found love as well...", he stopped and showed Naruto the second picture, depicting Minato, clad in a standard shinobi uniform, and Kushina as a happy couple, madly in love, and pointed at the former.

"... She married the future Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze, your father...", Hiruzen paused again to let that piece of information sink in. This was almost too much to handle for the boy 'T-The Yondaime Hokage is my father?! They worship him, yet treat me, his son, like dirt for something out of my control?!' Before Naruto could ponder any further the Hokage resumed, putting the image on the table.

"... Eventually, Kushina became pregnant and as it was the case with Mito her pregnancy lasted ten months due to the Bijū inside her. The seal began to gradually weaken and we knew it was going to be at its weakest during the moment of your birth, hence safety measures had to be taken on october tenth almost thirteen years ago. It was resolved that Kushina would give birth in the outskirts with Minato by her side to supervise the seal, guarded by ANBU and my wife. From this point onwards I can only tell you what happened from my point of view. The story you know from the history books is only the half-truth.

Somehow, the Kyūbi appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the village and wreaked havoc, thus I as Minato's predecessor had to take command of our forces and coordinate the defense. Luckily, I managed to chase it out of the village where Minato arrived and used his **_Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)_** to transport the fox far away in an instant before it could unleash a devastating attack upon the village..." Jiraiya grinned at that, proud of his student's accomplishment "... I and two of my best men ran as fast as we could to aid him in battle. Still, we arrived too late and a barrier, which your mother, who miraculously was still alive, had created around the area to pin the Kyūbi down, prevented us from approaching.

He already began the sealing ritual, the **_Shiki Fūjin (Reaper Death Seal)_**, offering his soul to a Shinigami as the price for its aid, condemning his soul to forever be trapped inside its stomach for all eternity..." Jiraiya and Kakashi looked visibly shaken "... Many tried, but a Bijū cannot be killed, at least not permanently. They reform after a few years, depending on the number of tails. That's why he had to resort to such a drastic measure or it might have attacked Konoha again and done major damage to Hi no Kuni, so instead of letting Kushina drag it back into her seal and die with it he sealed it inside of you, his son, while he, along with your mother, shielded you from the fox's mighty talons.

I was unable to hear their last words to you, though, as the barrier collapsed I arrived just in time to hear Minato stammer out his dying wish. He wanted you to be seen as a hero. As I was holding you in my arms, I decided to give you your mother's last name, because Minato has made countless enemies and in order to protect you from those of your mother I didn't grant you clan status, letting everybody believe the actual Uzumaki clan died out with her. Additionally, I decreed a law to never mention your jinchūriki status to the younger generation, so you could experience a somewhat normal childhood and left you in the care of the orphanage.

Understand, I had simply no time to raise a child since being the Hokage is a full-time job, Kakashi was thirteen, a child himself, so I denied his request to adopt you. Being a jōnin at that age does not by a long shot qualify someone to raise a child. Jiraiya, your godfather..." Naruto scowled at the sage maliciously, who averted his gaze downwards "... had to fulfil his duties, which involve long-term missions outside the village and the elders demanded you stay in the village, thus he couldn't adopt you either and sadly though I couldn't let Mikoto take care of you as well, who didn't knew you were Kushina's son.

I probably would have were it not for the villager's accusing the Uchiha clan to have a hand in the Kyūbi's rampage. Had I given you into her care the citizens would have revolted out of fear the Uchiha might use you as their weapon.", Hiruzen finished his tiresome tale with a sigh, his throat felt a bit sore. The three adults looked at Naruto expectantly, who stood still like a statue, fixing the ground, his bangs shadowed his eyes, absorbed in thought.

That was _a lot_ of information to take in. The boy always wanted to know where he came from. Apparently, he was the last of his kind, the last Uzumaki. A noble and respected clan. He felt closer to Sasuke than ever before. On his shoulders rests the glory of a now almost extinct and proud clan. Naruto has a new goal in life 'I will make my ancestors proud and someday revive my clan! The world will marvel to see the _Uzumaki clan_ rise from the ashes!'

In addition, his father was the Yondaime Hokage, but there was something that bothered him about that 'Why didn't my father let mother die with the beast? Jiji said it takes years before such a beast returns, more than enough time to prepare and train! Instead of raising me he chose to put a demon in my gut, put such a burden on my shoulders... turn me into a weapon, a jinchūriki?!'

Naruto tightened his fists, digging his nails into his palm, drawing some blood in the process that dripped down onto the floor 'How could he do this to me, make this decision for me?! A baby is innocent, a newborn child bears no sin! **I won't forgive you**! **You are not my father! I hope you suffer greatly!**'

While he could respect the Yondaime Hokage as a ninja and his sacrifice he doesn't have the heart to forgive him as his son. Naruto would bear this grudge for the rest of his life. Seeing him trembling Kakashi put a hand on his shoulder, giving his student a reassuring squeeze and was also extremely glad that the blonde didn't swat his hand away, successfully calming him, albeit just a little bit.

Kakashi released his hold. No one disturbed the boy and about half a minute in utter silence passed. Naruto had some questions and he better likes the answers! The boy's head snapped up, his glacial orbs met Hiruzen's regretful ones.

"You obviously have some questions, go ahead, I will answer them to the best of my abilities."

"I have only three. First, I _am_ a member of the Uzumaki _clan_ and we have an alliance with the Senju. Does Tsunade Senju know the whole truth about my heritage?", the boy inquired.

Hiruzen noticed how much he emphasized that he belongs to the Uzumaki _clan_, pride clearly evident in his voice. Regrettably he will have to burst his bubble later on and first just answered the question with a short "Yes"

If possible, his eyes grew even colder. True, the boy hasn't learnt much in Iruka's lessons as he had admitted to the chūnin instructor, but he at least knew that woman was Hashirama's granddaughter and thanks to Jiji's story the blonde now also knew that she's even closer related to him than a _normal_ Senju would be since she's the descendant of a full-blooded Senju _and_ Uzumaki. She will pay dearly for forgetting about him and not honoring the alliance... with her life!

The same applies to his _godfather_ for neglecting his sacred duty. _However_, Naruto wasn't suicidal, thus smart enough to keep his plans to himself. He can't risk a direct confrontation till he mastered Rokushiki completely and even then he wasn't sure of the outcome.

Naruto pointed his finger at his Jiji and spoke in a low, cold and accusing tone "Second, I recall you said that Iwa, Kiri and Kumo ganged up on Uzushiogakure. Konoha and Uzushiogakure were _allies_, so why didn't you aid them in battle during your reign?"

Hiruzen sighed "Naruto, the situation back then was very complicated, diplomatic relations were strained. All signs pointed to a new third war, skirmishes with smaller nations broke out all the time. Aside from Uzushiogakure we had no major allies and our relationship with Suna was still extremely tense at that time, due to the events of the second war still fresh in all our memories. The three superpowers invaded the Land of Whirlpools without warning. I had to weigh up two options, aid Uzushiogakure and make an enemy out of them, probably of Suna as well, or..." he closed both eyes, a tear escaped his left one, which ran down his cheek "... abandon them."

He _never_ expected his Jiji, the _Shinobi no Kami_, to have no honor. "... _coward_." Naruto growled bluntly in a contempt filled tone. The instant this insult left his mouth, faster than his body could react, a fist _buried_ itself into his stomach with tremendous force, causing sprays of blood to escape his gaping mouth! Excruciating pain cursed through his entire body, nothing he ever experienced before came even close to this level of agony!

**"Hokage-sama?!"**, Kakashi yelled out in worry. The Hokage's movements were blurry to him! He was speechless and felt somewhat helpless as well as angry. What could he possibly do against the Hokage, the leader of his village? Intercepting the blow or even attacking the Hokage was not an option if he valued his life.

"Sensei?!", Jiraiya was equally surprised. Not by the extreme speed, because he was able to see everything unfold, but by the brutality. Nevertheless, he expected Hiruzen to punish the boy anyway since Naruto had it coming to him for adopting the wrong tone. After all, his sensei was the Hokage and couldn't allow such disrespect to go unpunished. You can't walk into a Kage's office and call him a coward in front of his own forces. Hiruzen had to save his face. However, the sage believed his sensei went a little overboard, that was overkill.

The boy staggered backwards, his torso bent forward, while holding his stomach, shivering slightly and resisted the urge to vomit. He could barely stand, whimpered and felt like he was losing consciousness 'W-What?!' In front of him knelt his Jiji, his right hand still forming a fist. 'H-How?!' Naruto ultimately collapsed and landed on his butt, supporting himself with his hands and spit out a glob of blood that stained his suit 'I-Impossible! N-No... I-I w-won't be defeated b-by a single p-punch! I refuse to b-believe that I'm s-so weak! My goal to be the b-best can't be this f-far away!' Using his willpower he struggled to get shakily back on his feet and wiped the trail of blood off his chin.

While the blonde was doing this Hiruzen calmly moved behind his desk and sat down again, thinking 'I'm sorry, Naruto-kun.' and spoke harshly "**Guard your tongue!** You know absolutely nothing about the horrors of war, Naruto. Be glad you never have experienced it like me, the misery and pain... It was my duty as the Hokage to decide what was best for _Konoha_, to protect the people, the children, from harm. I did what was necessary, I sacrificed few to save many and I have to live with that. If you want to become Hokage you will have to make similar decision as well."

'Wrong! _I_ have to live with that. _My_ clan... _my_ village.', Naruto mused after he regained his composure. He wanted justice! In one fluid motion he turned his head slightly to the left and spit out the last remnants of blood in his mouth mixed with saliva without taking his eyes off the Hokage and faced his _Jiji_ fully again, this _trash_. The boy felt betrayed by the man he thought he could trust the most. This old man was now just the Hokage to him.

"Well, if betraying your nakama is part of a Hokage's job then I will crush the idea of becoming one, _Hokage-sama_...", Naruto declared, his cold eyes reflected pure hate and betrayal.

Jiraiya and Kakashi couldn't believe their ears and looked at him wide-eyed. Hiruzen didn't show it, wearing a mask of indifference, suppressing his emotions, though, internally his heart tore to shreds at the boy's tone and the look in his eyes, the very same gaze Orochimaru had sent him when he announced Minato as his successor.

Naruto wasn't finished just yet "... Furthermore, I, the last Uzumaki, thus the clan head, demand that _all_ Konoha shinobi remove _my_ clan crest from their flak jackets for not coming to our aid, _you_ broke the alliance."

'This boy has guts to _demand_ something like that, even if it's _somewhat_ justified. I have to give him that.', Jiraiya thought.

Hiruzen sighed, the boy will hate him even more and said in an all-business tone "For one thing the alliance was between Konohagakure and Uzushiogakure. _You_ are part of Konoha, a shinobi under _my_ command, not Uzu, which doesn't exist anymore, hence you don't officially represent a party of that agreement and don't have the right to _demand_ anything from me.

For another thing the Uzumaki clan is _extinct_. I don't acknowledge you as a member of the Uzumaki _clan_. As far as I, the Hokage, am concerned you are an Uzumaki by name only, despite your lineage and I won't grant you clan status, because Iwa, Kumo and Kiri won't sit idly by and watch the Uzumaki clan being reborn in Konoha. They went as far as to put all their differences aside, team up and destroy it, thus there is a high possibility they might do that again."

Naruto's self control was slipping away, his pulse quickened and a vein popped on his forehead. He began to breathe heavier, the stress of all those revelations was getting to him **"How dar..."** He wanted to shout _How dare you deny me my birthright you wretched old geezer!_ from the top of his lungs, but a metal-plated gloved hand covered his mouth before he could and the blonde fiercely glared up, meeting Kakashi's gaze, who decided to intervene this time.

He held Naruto's mouth tightly shut to save his pupil from another punishment and thought 'Your mouth, that you obviously inherited from Kushina, is going to get you killed one day!'

"Now, now, _calm down_, Naruto. I know you are infuriated and it might be difficult for you to accept, but Hokage-sama has spoken. His word is law and you know that, so drop it.", Kakashi said in a soft and caring voice and his words seemed to show effect. Naruto fixed the ground in defeat and remained still, yet, was still furious on the inside. He felt _humiliated_! Like a _pathetic_ weakling! His _pride_ hurt! Every breath that old man takes is an insult to his honor!

Once Kakashi was sure that Naruto has regained some common sense he let go and Hiruzen addressed the boy again, his words carried the wisdom of his lifetime as a ninja "Naruto, you don't seem to grasp what it means to be a shinobi. We place the village's well-being above all else. _Self sacrifice_, a nameless shinobi who protects peace from within the shadows, that is a true shinobi, that are true heroes. Don't you see that the safety of village matters more than your own selfish desires? Also, I know you are hurt, but I told you from the beginning I would tell you the truth, not that you will like it... Now, what is your third question?"

Naruto's snarled, eyes flashed between blue and red, not seen by the others. However, that brief chakra spike didn't went unnoticed by the keen senses of all the high-ranking experienced ninja in the room 'Selfish? **Selfish?!** I have spent my whole life keeping this beast inside of me at bay, protecting the world from its wrath, have endured how the village treats me and you call _me_ selfish! Besides, how can it be selfish to claim what is _rightfully_ mine? Uzumaki blood is running through my veins, I'm their son dammit! I shall honestly renounce my birthright simply because you are _afraid_?', the blonde scoffed internally.

"Cough Naruto, I'm waiting...", the Hokage reminded the boy.

Hiruzen's voice snapped him out of his inner monologue and he replied without looking up "What is in that box?"

"Two scrolls, your inheritance, or at least what's left of it. Twelve million ryō from Minato's and Kushina's shared account sealed in the first and thirty-one special kunai, that Minato used for the technique he became famous for, the **_Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)_**, in the other. Jiraiya...", he averted his gaze from Naruto to his student and nodded.

Jiraiya smirked. 'It's probably going to be a major pain in the ass to teach him, but he has a strong will as well as plenty of guts and that's all you need. That is more worth than any amount of jutsu.'

The _Toad Sage_ assumed his pose and began his introduction dance "Boy, you can call yourself lucky. I, the gallant Jiraiya, the epitome of manliness whose smile makes women swoon, known far and wide as the _Gama Sennin_ am offering _you_, Naruto Uzumaki, apprenticeship! I will instruct you in the art of fūinjutsu so you can revive the **_Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)_** and help you control your inner demon."

"I refuse", Naruto dismissed him nonchalantly.

...

Jiraiya froze in his tracks, gaping. A sweatdrop formed on his brow.

"Naruto?! Do you realize what opportunity you are throwing out of the window! He belongs to the _Densetsu no Sannin_ and his _willing_ to teach you.", Kakashi tried to reason.

The boy turned to face his sensei and responded "First and foremost, I don't want to have anything to do with this man, least call him my sensei. Also, I neither want to use the fox's chakra nor do I need it to be strong. The power it grants is just fake for it's not my own. Besides, it killed my mother, I want to eradicate its existence, I _hate_ it with every fibre of my being and, in addition, I do have my _pride_! I want to become known as _Naruto Uzumaki_, not _The Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi no Yōko_. Not to mention that while I'm using it this vile chakra is damaging my body constantly and clouds my mind. In conclusion, the Yondaime earned himself the title _Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō (Konoha's Yellow Flash)_ with this teleportation jutsu and I don't desire to walk in his footsteps."

"But not using that chakra is a huge waste! Besides, the **_Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)_** is Minato's legacy, you are his son!", Jiraiya threw in and Naruto glowered at him, rage burning inside him due to being associated with the Yondaime Hokage.

"Look, to clarify, I don't care one bit for that half of my blood that came from my worthless _father_. I don't owe him anything! The only one I view as my real father is Kakashi-sensei!"

That declaration stunned everyone, especially Naruto's _real_ father **'What?!'**

"... I don't care what you do with those kunai, throw them away for all I care and I don't want the money either, because I don't know how much of it belonged to the Yondaime, the account was shared, give it to the orphanage. The only items I'm interested in are the pictures of my mom.", Naruto finished

He then moved to the desk, took the first picture showing Mikoto and Kushina and slid it carefully into his pouch. Afterwards he took the second in hand and did something that shocked the adults to the core. The boy ripped the picture in half, separating the happy couple, put the part depicting Minato on the desk with an audible _thud_ and slid the other one into his pouch.

'Minato-sensei...'

'Minato-kun...'

'Minato...'

Naruto stood close to the Hokage's left. Facing him he said in a voice devoid of any emotion "Is there anything else you need me for Hokage-sama or am I free to go. This room smells like rotten people. I need some fresh air."

Hiruzen hates himself for what he's going to do "You are dismissed."

The blonde turned around, ready to leave, but his senses warned him to dodge! The attack was swift, a precise strike to a pressure point on his neck at point-blank range, no time to react properly. His eyes widened and the world slowly turned black. Naruto first collapsed onto his knees and then fell forward face first on the ground, unconscious.

Kakashi was perplexed "Hokage-sama? What..."

"Easy Kakashi, he is in no danger..." Hiruzen sighed in regret and ordered "Jiraiya, do it." The sage slowly walked up to Naruto and unsealed ink and a brush. Needless to say this did little to ease the jōnin's concern for his student.

"Hokage-sama, may I ask, do what?", he inquired.

"You may, Jiraiya is going to apply a customized version of the Hyūga cursed seal onto the boy..." Kakashi looked at him in sheer horror. Seeing this the Hokage added "... This seal won't be able to kill him. It's main purpose is just to just subdue him. Jiraiya will place it on the back of his neck. Unlike the original, instead of destroying his brain cells, it will bombard his spinal cord with extreme sensations of pain without an actual physical cause, causing him to reflexively collapse before his brain even begins to process the information..."

Hiruzen lit his pipe, took a puff and continued "Only you, myself, Jiraiya and Tenzō will be able to activate the seal within a twenty meter radius. Therefore you need to stay and once we are finished you will carry him home."

Kakashi now knew _what_ they are doing, however, he also needed to find out "Why?"

"You have seen it yourself. We have gained deep insight into his psyche. He's highly unstable and after today's events his loyalty is _questionable_ at best. He actually reminds me a little bit of Orochimaru and Fugaku (Sasuke's dad). I'm not going to repeat my mistakes. There is something dark about Naruto and I'm not referring to the fox... it _scares_ me. I saw it in his eyes. He would kill me if given the chance and everyone else he believes has wronged him. He's unpredictable, thus I will put that leash on him.

My sensei's Hashirama-sama and Tobirama-sama entrusted their will to me. It pains my heart, but I must protect Konoha, the people, shinobi and children from anyone who tries to harm the village, no matter what, whether they are my friends, siblings or even my own children. I have no other choice. Oh and Jiraiya..." he faced his student, who stopped the procedure and looked up, his face was an emotionless mask. "... Close the Hakke no Fūin Shiki (Eight Trigrams Seal) completely. If he doesn't want to use that chakra, then there is no need for it to stay open anyway and we don't have to worry about the Kyūbi breaking out easily anymore when Naruto gets enraged."

The Hokage deactivated the privacy seals and yelled "ANBU!" His bodyguards entered and lined up, not caring about the downed boy or what Jiraiya and Kakashi are doing, awaiting their next assignment. "Go and fetch Tenzō from the HQ. I want him in my office, now.", the Hokage spoke and they wordlessly disappeared.

* * *

**"Namikaze!"**

_Crash_

A solid wooden desk split in two under the enormous force of the Youndaime Raikage's fist after having read a report that a messenger lizard had delivered into his office, sending the few papers on it flying into the air and his assistant, Mabui, just rolled her eyes, already gotten used to the Raikage's violent antics. That was the third desk today. However, she noticed he yelled _Namikaze_. That was strange. This man, his arch nemesis, died a long time ago. She walked up to a paper on the ground, bent down, took it and straightened herself.

The document had photo attached to it with a paperclip, showing a blond boy with blue eyes and admittedly cute whisker marks, wearing a customized black suit, surrounded by... _groupies_. She smiled. That boy seemed to place value on formal attire, just like herself. Mabui also took a look at the actual report itself and her eyebrows rose, Naruto _Uzumaki_, Sasuke _Uchiha_, Hinata _Hyūga_ and _Sharingan no Kakashi_. Thanks to her photographic memory she absorbed the content almost instantly and was astonished.

"Raikage-sama, I admit this boy bears a striking resemblance to the deceased Yondaime Hokage, but that might be coincidence and his last name is strangely Uzumaki.", the assistant observed.

Having calmed himself _a little_ after his outburst A replied "Mabui, I will **never** forget that man's eyes and when I look at this boy I can see **him** staring right back at me! **This boy is his son!** I have no doubt about that! Also, the spies couldn't know it better. That transformation is no kekkei genkai, but the initial jinchūriki form. He must be the **The Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi no Yōko**! There is no other explanation. Yet, it's a mystery to me how he was able to block their weapons without a chakra cloak. I guess it's an ability the fox grants like Bee's ink. And his surname, _Uzumaki_, there have been rumors that the Yondaime Hokage was in a relationship with Kushina Uzumaki. **That old cunning monkey!** In the end, you cannot trust anyone, especially not a _tree hugger_. Hiruzen is constantly preaching about peace, military disarmament and unity and at the same time he was hiding and raising a **superweapon** all along!"

Mabui gave her Kage a few seconds to cool off and spoke again "Raikage-sama, what are we going to do about this? Not just the boy, but this entire team is going to become a serious threat in the future if we do nothing about them. They have the potential to surpass the _Densetsu no Sannin_."

A closed his eyes and mulled over the available options. An idea popped up in his mind. The chūnin exams are going to be held in Konoha in about three weeks from now on, a golden opportunity to gather additional intel or even get rid of them permanently. He opened his eyes, grinned and looked at his assistant.

"Mabui, send word to Bee. I want him to turn up his genin's training.", the Raikage ordered.

"What for, Raikage-sama?"

The Raikage chuckled "Kumo is going to participate in Konoha's coming chūnin exams and show these tree huggers what cloud shinobi are made of."

* * *

And that's it for now. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Ok, I can see this question coming. Why didn't Sasuke ask Kakashi to simply lift his forehead protector and show his Sharingan? Simple, it would have given an enemy the opportunity to give hidden allies a sign, prepare a jutsu, reach for a weapon or reveal an unknown dangerous dōjutsu, unlikely, but possible in the Naruto world. Besides, we have seen what Zetsu is capable of, hence it's better to be on the safe side. Next time the chūnin exams are going to commence! On my profile I have put links where you can view the new outfits of the characters.

**Reviews/PM's:**

**Why does jūken affect Naruto, despite him using Tekkai? **It's logical. The chakra pathway system is closely intertwined with the functioning of the organs and he can't prevent a Hyūga from inserting his or her chakra into that system.

**Why did Hinata beat him up in chapter seven? **Hinata is kind and cherishes all life. Also, after witnessing Zabuza's death, Haku committing suicide and the massacre she became emotionally agitated. Till that moment, she only knew Naruto's kind and caring side and after seeing him so ruthlessly tearing people apart she didn't recognize him anymore. She basically wanted to have the old Naruto back, but after seeing him crying Hinata knew that he was still human and not a heartless killing machine.

**Why didn't Naruto use Tekkai, when Hinata beat him up? **First, the beating itself didn't hurt him _that_ much (he didn't bled nor did he show any other signs of physical pain). Her words hurt him much more. Second, Hinata might have hurt her hands.

**SasukexHinata children issue:** Kishi himself stated humorously in an interview that if a Hyūga and Uchiha were to mate their offspring would have one Byakugan and one Sharingan eye, making this fact somewhat pseudo-canon. Besides, even if they wouldn't be able to conceive a child why shouldn't they nevertheless be together when both love each other? There are many real life couples who face such an obstacle.

**What's fucking wrong about using a tool to its fullest potential like the kage bunshin?** Absolutely nothing, but if he learns it and even decides to limit himself and use only ten clones at a time Naruto would have no true challenge anymore. His arsenal will be versatile and extremely powerful without it.

**Can we have some sort of reference for Naruto's level? In doriki? **Thanks to Kurama boosting his progress Naruto accomplished more than six years worth of rigorous taijutsu training in just two years and seven months. If the academy had not occupied so much of Naruto's time he could have covered a decade. He can use all six moves by now, more or less efficiently, thus his doriki must be close to 500. According to Lucci, someone can call oneself a superhuman if he or she is able to use all six basic forms and Spandam stated that people with a doriki of 500 are considered as such. For those who have a bad memory like me here is the official CP9 ranking list.

Common armed Marine soldier (reference): 10  
Rob Lucci: 4000  
Kaku: 2200  
Jabra: 2180  
Blueno: 820  
Kumadori: 810  
Fukuro: 800  
Kalifa: 630  
**Naruto: 470**  
Spandam: 9

Over time I will update this list. As you can see, Naruto still has a very long way to go. Though, I think the CP9 would welcome him in their ranks now. He's definitely much stronger than Nero and can perform the six basic moves, granted, he still struggles a bit with Geppō. As a reference, his maximum speed _when the exams begin_ (inferior Kamisori) roughly matches post timeskip Sasuke's when he confronted Naruto for the first time in the desert and tried to stab him.


End file.
